OSCE supports Tirana meeting on election administration, new voting technologies

Reform of Albania’s election administration as well as international good practices in new voting technologies was the topic of an OSCE- supported meeting in Tirana on 26 and 27 March 2012.

The meeting, organized by the Albanian Special Parliamentary Committee on Electoral Reform, with support from the OSCE Presence in Albania and ODIHR, brought together representatives of parliament, the Central Election Commission, non-parliamentary parties, civil society and international experts to discuss possible reforms to the election administration, based on recommendations made in the ODIHR final reports on the 2011 local and 2009 parliamentary elections.

“Electoral code reform constitutes one of the crucial reforms for furthering democratic developments in Albania,” said Ambassador Eugen Wollfarth, the Head of the OSCE Presence in Albania. “I believe that this event will help the Special Parliamentary Committee come forward with very good proposals that can be adopted in due time.”

ODIHR experts have been providing advice to the Special Parliamentary Committee on draft amendments since January 2012.

“ODIHR welcomes Albania’s efforts to improve its electoral legal framework and its readiness to consider the Office’s recommendations related to democratic elections,” ODIHR Election Adviser Richard Lappin said at the roundtable. “ODIHR continues to stand ready to assist the Committee in this important process.”