Even six months after the Parliamentary elections on February 9, the country has not formed the new institutions. Assembly members failed last week for the 58th time to constitute the ninth legislature, despite the second ruling of the Constitutional Court.

Osmani, in an interview with Polish broadcaster TVP World in Alpbach, Austria, said that it is unfortunate that the people still do not have the Parliament they voted for and that their will has not been materialized.

According to her, the lack of political agreement is happening due to polarization and lack of mutual trust. /KosovaPress/p.s./

Berisha said, “The opposition offered a coalition to these forces that were the opposition of the opposition, but they of course refused”.

“Thus, the small parties took away at least 8 MPs from the opposition. These served to deprive the opposition of 8 MPs”, said Berisha.

Focusing again on what he appreciated as an “electoral farce”, Berisha said that, “All the regions are making the balance sheets of the vote-rigging and we will present them publicly”.

Berisha stressed that, “My mission ends the day when Albanians vote freely”.

“I am fighting the battle for Albanians so that they can vote freely, have fair elections. My mission ends the day when Albanians vote freely. This is a battle that will end successfully the day when Albanians vote freely”, said Berisha. /a.f/p.s./

After hearing the claims, there will be another session on administration of evidence.

In today’s session, the commissioner also reviewed 21 reports of violations filed by the election campaign monitors for the period 24-28 April 2025.

Thus, the “Democratic Party-Alliance for Great Albania” coalition has opened electoral offices in the municipalities of Dibra, Fier, Kamza, Këlcyra, Korça, Përmet, Puka and Tirana.

The Commissioner gave the entities a 24-hour deadline to close the electoral offices, while the electoral subjects should confirm by facts that they are not electoral offices, but the headquarters of their party affiliated branches.

Also, the commissioner also reviewed the report of the Audiovisual Media Authority on the coverage of the election campaign by the Audiovisual Media Service Provider, for the period 17-23 April 2025.  AMA has found that “Bulevard TV” and “6+1 TV” have broadcasted advertisements outside the permitted time slots, while “Shijak TV” has applied screen division during the broadcast to show posters of the candidates running for MPs.

The Commissioner said that he would continue with decision-making in the next session. /j.p/p.s./

Parliament failed twice this week due to the procedural disputes among the parliamentary parties after the February elections in Kosovo.

“The people have a right to expect their political leaders to work together in the national interest,” British Ambassador to Kosovo Jonathan Hargreaves said in a post on the social media.

British diplomat underlines that Kosovo urgently needs a functioning Assembly and government more than two months after Kosovo’s people voted in elections.

Lawmakers from the Democratic Party of Kosovo, the Democratic League of Kosovo and the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo insist that the cabinet members, now elected as MPs, should resign, otherwise they won’t  vote on the report verifying MP mandates, a step that would  pave the way for Parliament to begin its work and form a new government.

However, the ruling Vetevendosje leader Albin Kurti, also Prime Minister Albin Kurti maintains that such a formal act is unnecessary.

German Ambassador in Prishtina underlined that new Parliament has failed due to hindering tactics by political parties.

“Citizens deserve politicians who put Kosovo before party politics. Therefore, I repeat: Genuine cooperation is urgently needed to guarantee functional institutions and the rapid formation of a stable government,” Rohde wrote on the Bluesky social media.

It is not clear whether the parliamentary parties will resolve their disputes before the next session of Parliament scheduled for Saturday, April 19.

Avni Dehari, the session chair on Thursday and newly elected MP from Vetëvendosje, said political parties could not reach consensus despite consultations.

“There was no agreement. Some representatives left the meeting,” Dehari told the chamber. “The session will resume within 48 hours, on April 19 at 12:00, in hopes of reaching common ground,” he said.

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The Code will serve as a common agreement to promote ethical standards, combat disinformation and misinformation in elections and ensure an equal level playing field in the digital sphere.

This code of ethics was drafted in cooperation with the American Democratic Institute (NDI), the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), and the Rule of Law Center at the University of Helsinki, following the model of the 2024 European elections, as well as other similar initiatives in the Netherlands or in North Macedonia.

State Election Commissioner Ilirjan Celibashi thanked the electoral entities that welcomed this initiative and added that this Code aims to encourage the parties participating in the elections of May 11, 2025 to conduct a proper and fair competition. We hope that the competing parties and candidates will show restraint during the election campaign and conduct a competition with ethical standards.

Head of the Center for the Rule of Law, University of Helsinki, Tuija Brax said that despite the fact that this Code of Ethics is a voluntary instrument, political parties have the opportunity to show their voters that they are seriously engaged and can trust them.

Blerta Hoxha, representative of International IDEA in Albania, praised the commitment of all parties, undertaking this proactive approach to develop a more ethical digital campaign, something that unites them with sister political parties in the European Parliament. /r.e/p.s./

The Conservative Party, the Democratic Party, Mundësia (Opportunity Party), the Christian Democratic Party, the Democratic Christian Party, and the Legality Movement Party are the first six political subjects to forward their applications with the central elections body for the upcoming general elections.

February 25 is the final deadline for registration of the political parties in the elections. On February 25, CEC should reveal the initial list of voters outside the country.

The electoral coalitions should register before the deadlines on March 3, while candidate lists should be submitted until March 12.

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Speaking in a Brussels panel alongside the Albanian Ambassador Ferit Hoxha and the Greek Ambassador Ioannis Vrailas, the EU Enlargement Commissioner forwarded the proposal for a national pact to accelerate the country’s EU membership, emphasizing the need for for a collective effort.

“Make EU accession a national project,” Kos said, citing Slovenia’s example and strategy of bipartisan support for its EU membership.

EU Enlargement named Albania and Montenegro as frontrunners for EU accession by 2030.

According to her, 10 intergovernmental conferences will take place during the Polish presidency of the Council of the European Union to close crucial clusters of accession negotiations with Tirana and Podgorica.

On his part, Albanian Ambassador to EU, Ferit Hoxha, expressed Albania’s readiness to conclude the accession negotiations by 2027, saying EU’s readiness for enlargement is real now.

“We are ready to finish negotiations by 2027 and join the EU by the decade’s end,” Hoxha said,

Greek Ambassador to EU, Ioannis Vrailas, highlighted Albania’s strengthening ties with the neighboring Greece and called for continued focus on reforms.

Participants underlined that the EU must prepare to accommodate 30 members as enlargement progresses.

/Klan//r.e/u.sh/

Mimoza Dhëmbi, the Budget Director at the Ministry of Finance, said that the political parties wining at least 1% of the national vote in prior elections qualify for state funds.

“The amount is determined by parliament and distributed based on votes received,” she explained

According to her, the fund for the political parties running in the elections is determined under a parliament decision.

Dhëmbi also said that in 2021, parliament allocated 130 million lek for campaign funding.

The Head of the Parliamentary Committee Chair Eduart Shalsi proposed raising the fund due to the growing role of diaspora engagement.

“This year is unique. Political parties have significant responsibilities abroad,” Shalsi said, pushing for the increase to 150 million lek. The proposal was unanimously supported by lawmakers.

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According to the schedule revealed by the President’s office, the head of state will receive the DP Secretary General Flamur Noka and the Chairman of the parliamentary group Gazment Bardhi at 10:30 a.m.

President Begaj will also host SP representatives an hour later and the consultations will conclude with a meeting with the State Election Commissioner Ilirjan Celibashi before he can set a date for the next year’s general elections in Albania.

The first round of consultations last Thursday involved smaller parties: the Republican Party (PR), the Party for Human Rights (PBDNJ), the Justice, Integration, and Unity Party (PDIU), and the Movement for National Development (LZHK), as well as the leader of the Euro-Atlantic Democrats, Lulzim Basha.

According to Article 92 of Albania’s Constitution, the President is responsible for setting the date of parliamentary elections, which must be held between April 15 and May 15, 2025.

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Chairman of the Environmentalist Agrarian Party Agron Duka said to reporters after the meeting with the head of state that, “We proposed May 4. The constitution provides for April 15-May 15. The most reasonable time for holding elections is May. They say that on May 9 there is a big event with participation of the prime ministers of Europe, hence, we think that the date 11 is inappropriate”.

“I believe that the president will meet the others, as well. We have given our proposal. We have been talking for an hour. The constitution defines 4 Sundays, two in April and two in May”, said Duka.

Asked if this is also the DP’s opinion, Duka said that the DP representative will come to the meeting with the Head of State and will consult him by himself.

President Bajram Begaj began today the consultations to fix and decree the date of the 2025 Parliamentary elections.

Dashamir Shehi, Fatmir Mediu, Agron Duka and Vangjel Dule were the first to go to Begaj’s office. The meeting with the leaders of the four opposition parties in the President’s Office, the Movement for National Development, the Republican Party, the Environmentalist Agrarian Party and the Unity for Human Rights Party, lasted about an hour.

On Thursday, President Begaj will hold a meeting with representatives from the Freedom Party.

The Socialist Party and the Democratic Party, as well as the representatives of the CEC, were called to a meeting by the president on Monday. /j.p/p.s./