The vote is the second this year in Kosovo after Kurti's Vetevendosje party fell short of a majority in February. Months of failed coalition talks prompted President Vjosa Osmani to dissolve parliament in November and call an early election.
Kurti's party was set to come first, winning 45.7 per cent of Sunday's vote, an exit poll on Dukagjini television showed shortly after polls closed at 7 pm local time. But it appeared unlikely that the party would secure the 61 seats in the 120-seat assembly that it needs to govern on its own.
The two main opposition parties, the Democratic Party and the Democratic League, were seen getting 22 per cent and 15.6 per cent of the vote respectively, according to the poll.
"The will of the citizens is now in the ballot boxes. Preserving this will is essential for the legitimacy and credibility of the electoral process," Kurti said on a video message after exit polls were published.
Another failure to form a government and reopen parliament would prolong the crisis at a critical time. MPs must elect a new president in April and ratify one billion euros ($A1.8 billion) in loan agreements from the European Union and World Bank that expire in the coming months.
The Balkan country's opposition parties have refused to govern with Kurti, criticising his handling of ties with Western allies and his approach to Kosovo's ethnically divided north, where a Serb minority lives. Kurti blames the opposition for the impasse.
In a bid to woo voters, Kurti has pledged an additional month of salary per year for public sector workers, one billion euros ($A1.8 billion) per year in capital investment and a new prosecution unit to fight organised crime. Opposition parties have also focused on improving living standards - a leading concern for voters.
Opinion polls were not published in Kosovo, but some seen by Reuters before the vote had favoured Kurti. Some voters said they did not expect the vote to bring significant change.
Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008 with US backing, including a 1999 NATO bombing campaign against Serbian forces trying to crush an uprising by the 90 per cent ethnic Albanian majority.
Despite international support, the country of 1.6 million has struggled with poverty, instability and organised crime. Kurti's tenure, which began in 2021, was the first time a Pristina government completed a full term.
Tensions with Serbia flared in 2023, prompting the EU to impose sanctions on Kosovo. The bloc said this month it would lift them after ethnic Serb mayors were elected in northern municipalities, but the measures likely cost Kosovo hundreds of millions of euros.
