NDI poll on local elections, electricity, jobs and corruption

TIRANA, Jan. 24 – The National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI) on Wednesday released key findings from its public opinion survey in six cities conducted between December 15, 2006 and January 5, 2007, based on a total of 2,500 face-to-face interviews in Tirana, Durr쳬 Elbasan, Vlora, Kor衠and Saranda. The overall margin of error was between +/-4.6 and 5.7%. One of the results was that 88% of persons interviewed said that they were likely to vote in the upcoming elections. “The message is clear,” said Shaun McNally, NDI/Albania Country Director. “Citizens care deeply about important issues facing the nation and they are expecting candidates to address citizen concerns during the campaign period.” The NDI stressed, however, that this public opinion survey is not predictive of the outcome of the February 18, 2007, local elections.
When asked which was more important in deciding their vote, the candidate’s individual strength or the political party’s strength, more than 70% of respondents said that candidates were more important than party in the six cities surveyed. When citizens were asked “How fairly would you say the upcoming municipal elections will be conducted?,” over 50% of respondents in five out of six cities answered “Very Fairly” or “Somewhat Fairly.” There was very real concern about standards in the upcoming election, including issues such as birth certificates, voter lists and vote count irregularities. Elbasan, Korca and Tirana appear to have a closely divided electorate, indicating the possibility of competitive elections in the upcoming local campaigns. When asked “If the municipal elections were held today, for which party would you vote,” the totals fell within the margin of error. When residents were asked if they had a favorable or unfavorable opinion of the major political parties, the responses were similarly close. The Democratic Party appears to hold an advantage in Durres and Saranda and the Socialist Party appears to hold an advantage in Vlore.
The most striking difference was in political party support. In the six cities surveyed, those supporting the Democratic Party believed that Albania was headed in the “right direction” by a margin of 85% compared to 11% for the “wrong direction.” Respondents supporting the Socialist Party believed that Albania was headed in the “wrong direction” by a margin of 64% compared to 34% for the “right direction.”
Electricity, jobs and corruption top the list of citizen concerns in five of six cities surveyed. Among residents interviewed in the six-city survey, when asked their two most important concerns, 47% said that electricity was either their first or second most important issue, 36% stated jobs, and 28% said corruption. However, in Saranda, road conditions were the number one concern.
Mayors (59%), local police (57%), municipal councils (53%) and civil registry offices (53%) received the highest overall honesty ratings (“Very honest” & “Honest”) in the six cities surveyed. The property rights office (52%) and local tax office (50%) had a majority of citizens saying the officials were either “Somewhat Corrupt” or “Very Corrupt.”
The public opinion survey research is part of a broader good government/anti-corruption program conducted by the Democracy and Governance in Albania (DGA) consortium, which includes NDI, IREX, and Partners for Democratic Change. The DGA program is funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The public opinion survey was conducted by Prism Research with Global Strategies Group. Prism Research, a polling firm established in Australia in 1996 with offices in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro, Kosovo, and Macedonia, conducted the fieldwork. Prism Research clientele includes numerous multinational, international and domestic organizations including NDI. Global Strategies Global Strategy Group is a leading strategic research and communications firm specializing in identifying the underlying factors that influence consumer and voter attitudes and behavior. With offices in New York and Washington, they have a long list of political, corporate and non-profit clients.
The purpose of the NDI/Albania six city survey is to assist political parties in Albania to improve their capacity to understand and respond to citizen interests. Political parties, media outlets and civil society organizations often conduct public opinion surveys in order to test the public’s attitudes regarding topical issues of the day and to develop plans to communicate with citizens. The NDI/Albania six city public opinion survey reflects citizen opinion at the time the interviews were conducted.