Justina Shiroka Pula

Justina Shiroka Pula
Pula in 2022
7th President of Kosovo
Incumbent
Assumed office 7 October 2026
Prime Minister	Albin Kurti
Preceded by	Albulena Haxhiu (acting)
President of the Kosova Academy of Sciences and Arts
In office 19 December 2025 – 7 October 2026
Preceded by	Mehmet Kraja
Succeeded by	Vacant
Member of the Assembly of Kosovo
In office 21 February 2011 – 7 May 2014
Parliamentary group	Democratic Party
Minister of Energy and Mining of Kosovo
In office 8 January 2008 – 21 February 2011
President	Fatmir Sejdiu Jakup Krasniqi (acting)
Prime Minister	Hashim Thaçi
Preceded by	Ethem Çeku
Succeeded by	Besim Beqaj
Personal details
Born	Justina Shiroka (1953-12-20) 20 December 1953 Pristina, AR Kosovo, FPR Yugoslavia (now Kosovo)
Party	Independent (from 2014)
Other political affiliations	Democratic Party (2008–2014)
Spouse	Blerim Pula ​ ​ (m. 1977; died 2026)​
Education	University of Pristina University of Zagreb

Justina Shiroka Pula (born 20 December 1953) is a Kosovar politician, author and economist who has served as the President of Kosovo since 7 October 2026. She is the third woman to hold the office, after Atifete Jahjaga and Vjosa Osmani. Previously, she served as Minister of Energy and Mining from 2008 to 2011 and as president of the Kosova Academy of Sciences and Arts (ASHAK), becoming the first woman to lead the institution.

On October 6, 2026, she was elected President of Kosovo with 81 votes in the Assembly of Kosovo.

Early life

Pula is Roman Catholic. She was born in 1953 in Pristina, Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia. She graduated with a degree in economics from the University of Pristina in 1976, and graduated in the theory and politics of development economics in 1984 from the University of Zagreb. In 1977, Pula obtained her PhD from the Faculty of Economics in Pristina with a thesis entitled Demographic Investments and Economic Development of Kosovo.

Career

She began working at the Central Bank of Kosovo after graduating, and has been a lecturer at the Faculty of Economics at the University of Pristina since 1978.

She has spent her professional career in financial and educational institutions, as well as leading various NGOs in the country. Between 2008 and 2011 she served as Minister of Energy and Mining, and between 2011 and 2014 as a member of the Assembly of Kosovo.

In 2016, Pula was elected a corresponding member of the Kosova Academy of Sciences and Arts and, since 2018, has served as secretary of the Social Sciences Section and a member of the board. In 2020, she was elevated to full academic membership of the Academy. On 19 December 2025, Pula was elected president of the Academy by the institution's assembly, becoming the first woman to hold the office.

Presidency

See also: 2026 Kosovan presidential election

On 4 March 2026, media outlets reported that the PDK had proposed her as a potential candidate for the 2026 Kosovan presidential election. However, both Pula and PDK leadership denied the claims that same day.

Shiroka-Pula was elected president by the Assembly of Kosovo on 7 October 2026, receiving 81 votes in the first round. The vote took place shortly after midnight, after the Constitutional Court's 6 October deadline for electing a president had expired. She was proposed by Prime Minister Albin Kurti after earlier candidates failed to win the backing of the opposition Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), ending a deadlock that had left the office vacant since Vjosa Osmani's term ended on 4 April 2026. She was sworn in before the Assembly the same day.

Works

• (2013). “Decision-Making Processes” (co-authored with B. Krasniqi), Pristina: Institute of Economic Research, “Globus” (201 pp.): ISBN 978-9951-582-06-3.
• (2007). “Linear Programming Transport Methods”, Pristina: University of Pristina (302 pp.): ISBN 9951-00-044-4 .
• (2006). “Management and Decision-Making” (co-authored with I. Kuka and Krasniqi, B.), Pristina: University of Pristina (399 pp.): ISBN 9951-00-057-6 .