TIRANA, Dec. 5 – President Bujar Nishani has set June 18, 2017, as the date for the next parliamentary elections.
Albanian laws require the head of state to set the elections for a Sunday after the current parliament finishes its mandate.
The presidential decree for the election of the new members of the 140-seat parliament was published Monday on the website of the president’s office.
The announcement was somewhat unexpected as the setting of a date for the local or parliamentary elections is usually a process agreed by all political parties, even though it is the legal prerogative of the president to set the date.
Prior to the parliamentary elections of 2013, the Albanian president held several consultations with political parties to set the date. However, in regards to the elections that will be held next year, President Nishani did not plan any meeting with political parties representatives.
There was no public reaction to the setting of the date by the top parliamentary parties.
The ruling majority and the opposition are expected to intensify efforts to improve the Electoral Code, as a key recommendation by the international community.
So far the Ad Hoc Committee on Electoral Reform has not agreed on any of the proposals for the amendment of the code.
The Democratic Party has insisted on the implementation of e-voting and e-counting while the Socialists have pushed on the issue of migrant voting.
Distrust between political parties is mounting as at the latest Central Election Commission meeting, representatives of the Democratic Party insisted on having a detailed list of voters sent by the newly-established municipalities.
According to a new electoral map that will be enforced in the upcoming elections, major regions of Albania will experience a decline in the number of mandates.
The northern region of Kukes, often considered a Democratic Party stronghold is one of the six regions to witness a change in the number of political representatives elected for parliament.
The 2013 parliamentary elections granted victory to the left-wing coalition led by the Socialist Party which defeated the centre-right Democratic Party then led by Sali Berisha. Socialist leader Edi Rama now is eyeing a second mandate, as Albania expects to enter membership talks with the European Union.
Experts have warned delays in the process due to the suspension of the vetting law part of the justice reform which aim to free the entire system from corruption and bribery.
