Pal Lekaj

[3][4][5] The Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) won a majority government in the city, and the AAK served in opposition.

[8] He took part in a delegation to Montenegro in May of that year, during which he called for the return of persons displaced from the city in the 1998–99 conflict.

During the buildup to Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence in February 2008, he led a delegation of leading city representatives to Albania and met with prime minister Sali Berisha.

Lekaj was assigned the fourteenth position on the AAK's electoral list in the 2014 Kosovan parliamentary election.

[13][14] After protracted negotiations, the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) and LDK formed a coalition government, and the AAK served in opposition.

[15] The PDK-LDK government introduced two extremely controversial pieces of legislation in the 2014–17 term, respectively concerning a border demarcation with Montenegro and the creation of an Association of Serb Municipalities.

The opposition AAK and Vetëvendosje parties strongly opposed these initiatives and frequently disrupted the assembly's proceedings to prevent their passage.

In October 2015, Lekaj was part of an AAK delegation that met with Republic of Kosovo president Atifete Jahjaga in a bid to overcome the political impasse.

"[16] Several AAK and Vetëvendosje politicians disrupted assembly meetings in this period by opening tear gas canisters.

[17][18] The AAK ended its support for the tear gas protests in early 2016, and Lekaj became the leader of the party's parliamentary group at around the same time.

Lekaj responded that the work was taking place outside the zone and was quoted as saying, "I would like to use this opportunity and inform everyone [...] that we are dealing with a completely normal matter and it should not be translated as something against the communities or to cause unnecessary noise.

Lekaj described this as an "empty threat" and was quoted as saying, "the Serb List should realize once and for all that they are citizens of Kosovo, an independent and sovereign state.

At the end of his ministerial term, Lekaj signed new rail and motorway agreements between Serbia and the Republic of Kosovo.

[35] In January 2024, Lekaj was convicted along with three aides and sentenced to three years and eight months' imprisonment and a 3.5 year ban on holding public office on charges of abuse of power in an overspending case involving the construction of the Arben Xhaferi highway in 2017 when he was infrastructure minister.