TIRANA, Nov 9 /ATA/ The co-chair of the parliamentary electoral reform committee Damian Gjiknuri said the electoral reform process had fallen behind schedule and risked missing its agreed deadlines due to lack of consensus with the opposition.
Addressing the committee meeting, Gjiknuri said the work had fallen behind the planned timetable, while the group of experts had failed to finalise proposals on several key aspects of the reform.
Gjiknuri said the opposition had pledged to submit proposals on ensuring a separation between the state and political power, but had so far failed to present concrete recommendations.
He questioned what additional safeguards the opposition was seeking, saying no proposals had been put forward on the matter.
Gjiknuri also pointed to delays in the draft law on political party financing, stating that although experts had completed the text, its submission for assessment by international experts had been held up for more than a month.
Gjiknuri said the draft law on political party financing had been reviewed by the Venice Commission and ODIHR, with experts having completed their work. However, he said its submission to international experts for further assessment had been delayed for more than a month.
He also proposed adding amendments to the Electoral Code concerning the new administrative-territorial division to the committee’s agenda, arguing that changes were needed following the adoption of the new law and the setting of the date for local elections.
According to Gjiknuri, the amendments should ensure proportional representation of cities and administrative units in municipal councils without altering the existing electoral system.
Gjiknuri stressed that the proposal would leave the existing electoral system unchanged, with municipal council members continuing to be elected through ranked candidate lists.
He said the proposed amendments would instead introduce a revised seat-allocation formula, based on the votes political parties secure in each administrative unit and applying the D’Hondt method.
According to Gjiknuri, the changes would preserve proportional representation while adjusting how seats are distributed, and should be completed by December.
Gjiknuri also highlighted the European Commission’s call for the electoral reform to be approved swiftly and through cross-party consensus.
He warned that the lack of agreement could prevent the committee from meeting its objectives before its 30 December deadline.
“European integration should not be used as a tool for obstruction. It is a major goal shared by all Albanians and political parties, but that does not mean it should become a means of blocking progress. This is the only committee whose work can be halted at any time. If one side is unwilling to cooperate, the committee cannot move forward,” Gjiknuri said.
Regarding proposals to change the electoral system, including a nationwide proportional system with open lists and a run-off vote in local elections, Gjiknuri said these issues required broader discussion and could also involve constitutional amendments.
He added that the ruling majority had put forward a possible compromise, suggesting discussions on reducing the number of MPs if political parties agreed to move towards a nationwide proportional representation system.
“Our proposal has been on the table: if we are to change the electoral system, including by adopting a proportional representation model, we must also address the number of parliamentary seats,” Gjiknuri said.
He concluded by urging the opposition to submit its proposals as soon as possible, stressing that they would be subject to legal scrutiny and assessment by international institutions.
“Not every proposal put forward by the opposition will automatically be accepted. On the contrary, each will undergo legal examination and could also be referred to ODIHR for an opinion,” Gjiknuri said.
