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The list of voters is one of the essential elements of the preparation of an election process, as it directly ensures the constitutional right to vote for every Albanian citizen who turns 18 on election day. The Electoral Code stipulates that the preparation of the final list of voters goes through a process of drafting, verification and publication during which all Albanian citizens can be assured of the correct inclusion of their data in the list.
The publication of the preliminary lists or as it is called, the publication of the extracts of the electoral components, is carried out through a process that includes the Minister of the Interior, the General Directorate of Civil Status (DPGJC), Municipalities, as well as the Offices of Civil Status (OCS) near each municipality, while the entire process is supervised by the Central Election Commission (CEC).
The Parliamentary elections of May 11, 2025, decreed on December 5, 2024, give the possibility of publishing 3 extracts of electoral components.
According to the provisions of the Electoral Code, the beginning of the process of drawing up the extract of electoral constituents of all citizens who reside in the areas of voting centers under the jurisdiction of each Office of Civil Status, should have started from OCSs no later than yesterday, December 10, 2024, based on an Instruction of the Minister of the Interior, which, as far as it has been notified, has not yet been approved.
The Coalition for Reforms, Integration and Consolidated Institutions (KRIIK) expresses its concern about the Minister of the Interior not yet approving the Instruction on the procedures for drawing up voter lists for the upcoming parliamentary elections.
KRIIK has previously expressed concern that for this election process there is very little time left for the process of verifying and cleaning the voter lists, given that only three extracts of the electoral components will be published, insufficient time in the judgment of KRIIK, for checking and correcting the voter lists based on the numerous problems brought about by the previous election processes, and especially those of the 2023 local elections.
On the other hand, the possibilities to address the accuracy of the electoral components are reduced even more if it is taken into consideration that the Electoral Code provides that the requests for changes in the extract of the electoral components can be submitted to the OCS no later than March 11, 2025. Also, the possibility of specifying the electoral components for Albanian citizens living abroad becomes quite difficult, since the procedure of their application to become part of the list of voters abroad begins on January 11 and ends on March 11, 2025 (article 25, paragraph 4 of the Electoral Code).
Regarding all of the above, KRIIK urges the Minister of Interior to adopt as soon as possible the Instruction on the procedures for compiling the voter lists for the Parliamentary Elections of May 11, 2025, taking into consideration the addressing of the concerns previously noted by the reports of technical auditors, as well as the findings and recommendations related to this process by election observers.
In drafting this Instruction and following this process, KRIIK brings publicly to the attention of the Minister of the Interior the need to consider:
- The explicit citation in the instruction of the phrase “… the automatic generation of the list by the NRCS system”, as it was defined in previous instructions, avoiding and leaving no room for manual management of it;
- The fulfillment of the legal obligations arising from the Electoral Code regarding the written notification of voters and the accountability mechanism of Mayors for this process (Article 52, paragraph 4 of the Electoral Code);
- The planning of the necessary financial fund for the written notification of voters, which should made available to each Municipality before January 4, 2025, at which time the 60-day period of written notification to each voter residing in the territory of the respective municipality begins (article 52, paragraphs 1 and 5 of the Electoral Code);
- provision in the instruction of the appropriate notification model that will be used for written notification of voters, which must contain the place where the citizen or major member of family being notified must sign (article 52, paragraph 4 of the Electoral Code);
In conclusion, KRIIK calls on and urges the Ministry of the Interior and the General Directorate of Civil Status to engage and make full transparency periodically throughout this process.
This transparency is even more necessary in this election process, since for the first time the voting of Albanian citizens living abroad will be applied, and therefore those who register to vote abroad will be removed from the list of voters inside the country.
It is also necessary that, at a minimum, after each publication of the extract, a complete presentation of the entire process followed is made, as well as the publication of all the summary data of the relevant extract.
KRIIK urges the State Commissioner for Elections and the Deputy Commissioner, to appoint as soon as possible two technical auditors for the verification of actions in the database of the NRCS, whose appointment must be made no later than January 4, 2025 (Article 61, paragraph 2 of the Electoral Code).
Also, KRIIK urges the Assembly of Albania to fulfill its obligations by giving full legitimacy to the mandate of the Deputy State Commissioner for Elections, by re-electing the incumbent Deputy Commissioner or a new one, since her term of office has expired on October 5, 2024.
Tirana, on December 11, 2024!
*This Document is published in Albanian and in English.
The Albanian version is the only official document