The Central Election Commission of Albania in co-operation with the OSCE Presence organized a national high-level conference titled "Voting from abroad - the way forward", on 19 October 2023. The conference facilitated discussions among relevant stakeholders on how the Assembly can address the legal gaps in the Electoral Code identified by the Constitutional Court, and other crucial elements of voting from abroad.
The conference brought together members of parliament, main political parties, state institutions, diaspora representatives, civil society actors and international partners.
"Out-of-country voting is a matter of both principle and practicality. Albania has already addressed the first part of the issue, by regulating in principle the right of its citizens living abroad to vote. What remains a challenge is how to ensure the proper and effective exercise of this right in a practical sense, which has proven to be complex. The time is now to address the specific issues regarding the execution of that political consensus which was achieved in 2020," Head of the OSCE Presence Ambassador Bruce Berton said at the opening of the event. He added that it is crucial that any decisions - be it on legislative gaps or practical arrangements - arise from a wide-reaching consensus, based on a thorough assessment and comprehensive consultations with all relevant stakeholders, from political actors to civil society and the diaspora community.
State Election Commissioner Ilirjan Celibashi said: "The amendment of the Electoral Code is the first and sine qua non step to enable voting from abroad in the general elections for the Assembly of Albania in 2025. Therefore, to the degree that is institutionally possible and allowed to the CEC, we urge the ruling majority and the opposition to agree on the required changes to the Electoral Code regarding voting from abroad. It is important that the rules on the registration of voters from abroad, the method of voting and the counting of votes, the output of the result and the calculation of mandates based on this result are approved as soon as possible, preferably within this year, as the Constitutional Court has decided".
Ambassador of Switzerland Ruth Huber, chargé d'affaires of the Delegation of the European Union Luigi Soreca and US Embassy's Political-Economic Counselor Allison Dyess also spoke at the event.
Experts engaged by the OSCE Presence and International IDEA informed conference participants of the standards and models regarding registration of voter from abroad, the voting and counting process, and the representation of voters from out of country.
The conference was the first activity under the OSCE Presence's project "Support to electoral reform and process in Albania", which is funded by the governments of Sweden, Switzerland and Poland.
The OSCE Presence will support the Assembly of Albania, the Central Election Commission, other state institutions and political actors in view of preparing the legal and administrative framework for the successful implementation of the out-of-country voting in the 2025 parliamentary elections.
