In the late 1980s, civil unrest which had been striking the province for decades, suddenly erupted further in Kosovo as ethnic Albanians demanded more autonomy (in view of becoming the 7th Yugoslav Republic).

At the same time, Serbian Communists' leader Slobodan Milošević used the situation in Kosovo as a political means to win popularity among Serbs.

As a result, its members proclaimed in protest on the steps of the parliament building the "Republic of Kosova", independent from Yugoslavia, which drafted its own constitution.

By the spring of 1991, the LDK had support from the diaspora in Zürich, Stuttgart and Brussels and numbered a massive membership of approximately 700,000 people.

[citation needed] In September 1991 the LDK-constituted shadow Albanian parliament of the self-styled Republic of Kosova adopted a resolution supporting full-scale "Independence and Sovereignty of Kosovo".

After the NATO bombing campaign in 1999, leading LDK members were present for the signing of the Kumanovo Treaty that adopted United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 and formalized the cessation of hostilities in Kosovo.

At the legislative elections held on 24 October 2004 the party won 45.4% of the popular vote and 47 out of 120 seats, seven of which have defected to the Nexhat Daci-led Democratic League of Dardania.

The more liberal-conservative stance of Fatmir Sejdiu took over, leading to Nexhat Daci and 6 other MAs forming the more conservative Democratic League of Dardania.

After losing seats consistently under Sejdius leadership unrest within the party began to grow and before the Kosovan parliamentary election, 2010 Isa Mustafa emerged as the new leader securing more than two thirds of the votes.

[12] Former party leader Isa Mustafa had over 70 cases submitted to the prosecutor over alleged abuse of office while serving as Prishtina mayor.

Former Minister of Culture Astrit Haraqia has been accused of abusing office during 2004–2007 as well as being involved in a large scheme to sell Schengen visas with other party official Ukë Rugova.

In the list made by the Minister of Finance, Labor and Transfers of Kosovo Hekuran Murati a total of 50 businesses had benefited 60 million euros from the recovery package drafted by the Hoti Government.