TIRANA, July 13 /ATA/ Damian Gjiknuri, co-chair of the Electoral Reform Commission, said in Parliament on Monday that the Central Election Commission (CEC) had performed well and professionally in managing the 2025 electoral process.
He added that international assessments had also recognised the professionalism of the body responsible for organising elections.
“The CEC has administered elections in a professional manner and has been able to address the concerns raised by the parties. The resolution confirms that the electoral process was managed professionally. The institution responsible for organising elections demonstrated professionalism and successfully administered the diaspora vote as well,” Gjiknuri said.
He said that, despite some logistical challenges, the electoral process represented an important step forward, especially with the introduction of diaspora voting for the first time.
“There were, of course, some logistical issues, which are normal as this was the first time diaspora voting had been implemented. The CEC also applied new technologies in the electoral process,” he said.
The co-chair of the Electoral Reform Commission urged the opposition to cooperate in addressing outstanding issues and advancing the reform of the electoral system.
“I call on the opposition to cooperate so that we can resolve the remaining problems. We need to work together on electoral reform,” Gjiknuri said in conclusion.
In his remarks, Gjiknuri said the government was ready to introduce electronic voting, which could be implemented in cooperation with the opposition.
He added that the Electoral Reform Commission would set a deadline at its next meeting, as several issues between the parties have yet to be resolved.
“The government has for some time expressed its willingness to allocate more than 50 million euros in funding to implement electronic voting in Albania,” he said.
“If there is the political will, this is the right moment to make it happen through a political agreement ahead of the next general elections,” he added.
Gjiknuri said that “the Electoral Reform Commission, which I believe will seek an extension at the next session, has done relatively good work, but has encountered difficulties in political communication.”
He called on the opposition to cooperate in extending the commission’s mandate for several months to address the remaining outstanding issues.
“We have the opportunity to improve the integrity of electoral commissions, whether by delegating more powers to local levels, through a more decentralised counting process, or by introducing technology,” he said.
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