PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — The coalition of former ethnic Albanian rebel commanders won the most votes in Kosovo’s general election Sunday, according to an exit poll, in a campaign dominated by a border demarcation deal with Montenegro that brought down the previous government.

The ex-rebels’ coalition came in first with 40 percent of the vote, the exit poll for Klan Kosovo TV station said. The nationalist Self-Determination Movement came in second with 30 percent, while the coalition led by former Prime Minister Isa Mustafa is third with 27 percent of the vote.

The poll questioned 2,500 voters outside polling stations and its margin of error was 1.5 percent.

Ramush Haradinaj, who is nominated by the coalition to be prime minister, hailed Kosovars “for the trust given to the coalition,” adding “these are the best elections ever held in Kosova.”

“The victory is convincing and make us capable of operating further to create the country’s government,” he said.

Mustafa, of the Democratic League of Kosovo, rejected the exit poll, calling on supporters to stay calm “because results will be different.”

The new Cabinet will have a tough job in resolving several thorny issues, including the border demarcation deal with Montenegro. The approval of another agreement with Serbia giving more rights to the ethnic Serb minority, and the continuation of fraught talks with Belgrade, which denies Kosovo’s existence as a state, were also key concerns.

The results for the new 120-seat parliament are expected by Monday.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008. The new state has been recognized by 114 countries, including the U.S. and most of the EU members, but not by Belgrade.

Nineteen political parties, five coalitions and two citizens’ initiatives, all promising to secure economic growth and ease Kosovars’ travel restrictions to the European Union, have nominated candidates.

Voted ended at 7 p.m. (1700 GMT; 1 p.m. EDT) with only a few minor incidents reported from police and prosecutors.

Valdete Daka, head of the Central Election Commission (or KQZ) that manages the electoral process, is expected to hold a news conference to give turnout figures.

U.S. Ambassador Greg Delawie tweeted that “Based on feedback from observers, @KQZKosova is doing a great job today organizing the elections. Keep it up, more hard work still to come.”

Local and international observers are monitoring the vote.

Among the contenders is a coalition of three major parties run by former rebel commanders. They have proposed Ramush Haradinaj, still regarded by Serbia as a war criminal, as prime minister.

Others include Prime Minister Isa Mustafa’s party, which nominates former finance Minister Avdullah Hoti for leadership, and the Self-Determination Movement, the biggest opposition party to shun pre-election coalitions, which put forward their founder Albin Kurti as a candidate for prime minister.

Ethnic Serbs and other minorities have 20 out of 120 seats in the parliament.

Kosovo is the only western Balkan country whose citizens need visas to enter the EU’s Schengen zone. To join, Brussels insists Kosovo’s parliament must first approve a border demarcation deal signed with Montenegro in 2015.

Opposition parties say that deal meant a loss of territory, over 8,000 hectares (20,000 acres), or less than 1 percent of Kosovo’s land. The former Cabinet, international experts and the country’s Western backers dispute that claim.

The Self-Determination Movement and others also oppose another deal signed in 2015 that gave more rights to the ethnic Serb minority.

A further issue is the prospect of former ethnic Albanian senior rebel commanders facing prosecution in the newly established war crimes court. The court in The Hague is expected to shortly issue indictments for crimes committed against civilians during and after the 1998-1999 war with Serbia.

Thousands of Kosovars were seen crossing into neighboring Albania to follow their country’s World Cup qualifier with Turkey held in northern Shkoder.

Kosovo Football Federation head Fadil Vokrri nevertheless feared that the election had deprived many fans of following the team. He and his staff had voted early and joined the team.

“I believe both sides have lost: the election because players wanted to cast their ballot to build Kosovo’s institutions, but also we will miss many voters not following us,” he told KlanKosova television station.

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Llazar Semini reported from Tirana, Albania.