Albanian President Bajram Begaj has confirmed the date of the local elections will be 14 May 2021, a move welcomed by the head of the Central Election Commission (CEC), who called it a welcome democratic development.
The last election was in April 2021, followed by the choosing of the new president in the summer of 2022. In May next year, Albanians will choose mayors throughout the country’s municipalities.
Celibashi took to Twitter to welcome the news and said they would be carried out in a manner recognised and accepted by international standards.
1/2.🇪🇺 The Local Government Elections of May 14, 2023 will be a welcome democratic development. They have long been in the attention of CEC to prepare and administer them according to recognized and accepted international standards.
— Ilirjan Celibashi (@ICelibashi) October 24, 2022
“Professionalism, impartiality, transparency and cooperation with political parties, media and civil society are reconfirmed as fundamental characteristics of the CEC activity,” he said.
Currently, Albanian municipalities are governed by mayors from the ruling Socialist Party, with the exception of one. This situation arose following the 2019 local elections, which were boycotted by the opposition and saw a voter turnout of less than 20%.
All eyes will be on Tirana, where Mayor Erion Veliaj is running for a second term. With a fragmented opposition dominated by infighting, a clear opponent is yet to emerge.
