TIRANA, Nov 9 /ATA/-By Maela Marini/ State Election Commissioner Ilirjan Celibashi emphasized on Sunday that political parties must explicitly state their position regarding their endorsement or opposition to the large-scale implementation of electronic voting and vote tabulation systems in electoral processes.
In a media briefing, Celibashi emphasized that electronic voting and tabulation were not implemented in the local byelections across the five municipalities due to time constraints and logistical limitations.
However, he noted that “if elections were to be held in the Municipality of Tirana, electronic voting and tabulation would be piloted again.”
Celibashi emphasized, “A final decision from the political leadership is needed regarding the broader adoption of electronic voting and tabulation. In my opinion, it would be advantageous, but there is still no clear guidance on all aspects of the process. Even when we have implemented it, results were released hours later, although the system is capable of producing them within minutes after voting closes.”
When asked about the validity of elections with low voter turnout, Celibashi remarked, “Some countries set a minimum participation threshold for elections to be considered valid.”
He added, “I do not agree with this approach, as it is the voters’ choice to participate or not. Nonetheless, this is an issue that requires discussion within both the political sphere and society at large.”
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