Albanian Election Live Blog: Morning

Some 3.6 million Albanians who are eligible to vote will have the chance today, 25 April in the general elections. Out of that figure, 1.7 million live abroad, some 600,000 of which live in Greece and North Macedonia and will not be allowed to take part, due to a mandatory quarantine period of 2 weeks, imposed by the Albanian government just days before the election. Around 25,000 will be unable to vote as they are COVID-19 positive and no provisions have been made for them to exercise their right.

A total of 5199 polling stations are open throughout the country between 7 am and 7 pm. After the polls close, votes will be counted in 92 vote counting centers.

Exit will bring you a running update of events as they happen.

12:18

• In Vashtimi, Korca, a PD observer noted that an individual attempted to vote with his family. He tried to stop him and a fight broke out.
• In Memaliaj, a clash occurred between supporters of PD, LSI, and PS. According to the media, PD and LSI were filming PS voters and this resulted in conflict.

12:17

• Reinhold Lopatka Head of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly delegation said that the use of biometrics throughout Albania and electronic voting in some stations is progress and something that doesn’t exist elsewhere. He observed there were a number of problems during the run-up to election day, but so far, everything was running smoothly.

12:14

• The CEC announced that voter turnout is higher than in 2017 by around 2%-4% when compared to the same hour. In Tirana, the turnout by 11am was around 23% while in 2017 it was around 17%.

12.12 pm

• Former Prime Minister Fatos Nano cast the vote today with his wife in Mullet. He said that some will be happy, others will be saddened by the result. He claimed the turnout is low so far and citizens should go to vote.

11.49 am

• Independent candidates supported by Vetevendosje have voted in Albania today. Kreshnik Merxhani voted in Gjirokaster, Iliaz Shehu in Lezhe and Boiken Abazi in Tirana.

11:42 am

• Ora News reported that their Exit Poll workers were threatened by an unidentified person. They said their interviewers are authorized to conduct the work.
• A PD observer has reported he was assaulted in public by Socialist Party supporters, related to MP Blendi Klosi.
• Two members of the PD are being investigated in Dibra for allegedly detaining the vehicle of PS member Agron Cerri yesterday. It’s alleged they stopped and searched the vehicle, keeping it locked until the police came. They claimed it contained materials that could impact the election process.
• One person has been arrested in Trana for photographing the vote.

11:34 am

• LSI candidate Luan Rama claimed has raised concerns over the presence of people outside voting centers. He claimed they wait to verify what party the individual voted for.
• In Kavaja, the Socialist Party chairman of the area was asked to leave the center by the Commissioner. He refused, despite this being illegal.
• In Elbasan, voting was paused at a voting center after an unauthorized person accompanied citizens while they were voting. The secretary of the center requested termination of the process due to fears over pressure being inflicted on voters.

11:30

• So far, the day has been plagued by technical issues. The whole of Albania is using a biometric identification system, while in some parts of Tirana, electronic voting is being piloted.
• The voting process hasn’t started in two voting centers in Lezhe due to technical issues with the equipment. The affected voting centers are in Fishta and Shenkol.
• Voting was interrupted for two hours in Korca due to issues with biometric identification. During this time, manual verification was carried out.
• Head of the CEC Ilirjan Celibashi said that 142 voting centers are affected and that 120 of these are doing manual verification. He asked that technical issues not be characterized as political and reminded Commissioners of their responsibilities under the law.
• Celibashi said that this is the first time Albania has used such a system and as such there are expected to be issues. He added the issues mainly related to lack of knowledge from operators and printing.
• In Durres there were also issues as many citizens changed their address following the 2019 earthquake. Some 80 citizens are reported to have not been able to find their names on the lists.

11.18 am

• Nisma Thurje has called on citizens to exercise their vote. They said all Albanians, young, old, rich and poor have the power to choose who will represent them. These people will make decisions on tax, public property, and the future. They added, if people don’t vote, they will have to live for 1500 days with the choice made by others.

11:16 am

• The Central Election Commission reports that around 17% of voters, equivalent to 13,694 citizens have voted so far. Out of 5199 polling stations, 1210 have reported. Tirana leads the way with participation, followed by Elbasan, Lezhe, Berat, and Dibra.

11:13 am

• Independent candidate in Dibra, Elton Debreshi called on citizens to come out and vote. He said today is a special day and that the vote is sacred and a dignity for everyone. He reminded voters that change can only come from the people.

11:05 am

• Ambassador Urszula Gack, the head of the ODIHR Limited Election Observation Mission held a press conference this morning.
• She said: “All eyes are on us today on election day. it’s a very important day for us…but it has also been important to look at the whole campaign, how candidates were registered, and any allegations of wrongdoing. We have been following these events since the middle of March.”
• She added that ODHIR has representatives across all 12 constituencies.
• Gack said so far things have been quiet but the information will be collated between all observers and added to information collected over the past five weeks. Another press conference will be held tomorrow at 3 pm.

11:03 am

• So far, some 81,078 people have voted throughout Albania. This equates to more than 16.04 of the population.

10.43 am

• Voting was temporarily suspended at a voting centre in Vlora today as a citizen was caught photographing his vote.
• A similar incident was reported in Dhoksat, Gjirokaster and at the Cajupi School in Tirana.
• Photographing a vote is illegal and punishable by up to three years in prison.
• This practice is carried out typically when the voter is required to report back on who they voted. This can happen when someone has been pressured or paid to vote a certain way.

10:36 am

• Prime Minister Edi Rama has voted in Surrel, Tirana. He did so and then gave a press conference afterward while wearing a black hat with the number 12 on it. This could potentially contravene election laws as it refers to the number that citizens should select when voting for his party on the ballot sheet.
• He didn’t mention any political party or campaign, instead letting his hat do the talking. He attended the voting center with his wife Linda.

10:30 am

• Ilirjan Celibashi has announced that so far, the situation across the country is calm with few technical problems. He called on political parties and candidates to demonstrate calmness, patience, and prudence when communicating with the public and supporters.

10.20 am

• The Director of the State Police has ordered 5200 police to guard polling stations today. More than 7500 police offers have been trained since December to support the election process. The police have drafted a four-phase plan to facilitate a smooth electoral process.
• Gatherings within a 150-meter radius are not allowed.
• Police officers with less than four months’ experience are not guarding polling stations.
• Armed forces have been dispatched to guard embassies. They were spotted at the Swedish Embassy and the US Embassy this morning.

10:16 am

• Electronic voting and counting are underway in Electoral Administrative Zone no.40/Administrative Unit no.10 in Tirana. Some 23,600 voters are expected to cast their ballot electronically throughout the course of the day.
• Biometric identification is being used for the first time in Albania. A device is placed in each voting center that is using the method. It is able to read the electronic chip of the identity card or passport. Once that has been scanned, it displays the photograph and card data on a screen which will be visually compared by staff at the center. If the identity is confirmed, voters will be fingerprinted and given a ballot paper. These devices are not connected to a network which means they do not communicate with each other or any centralized database.

10:13 am

• Former Democratic Party Chairman and ex-Prime Minister Sali Berisha is believed to have cast his ballot in the Kosova 9-year school on Rruga Elbasanit.
• He called on citizens to vote and spoke of his confidence that the Democratic Party will win. He also condemned the decision by the government to enforce mandatory quarantine on anyone coming from Greece or North Macedonia, calling it illegal and immoral.

10:07 am

• Mayor of Tirana Erion Veliaj has cast his vote alongside his wife Ajola Xoxa in the Olympic Park. He gave a statement to the media where he said “the vote is louder than noise and bullets” and “we have a historic chance for this to end well.”
• Head of the Socialist Party Parliamentary Group Taulant Balla cast his vote in Librazhd this morning. He said he believes it will be a quiet day with no issues and called on citizens to go and vote.

10:01 am

• The voting has stopped in two voting centers in Fier; Kuman and Libofsha. This is due to technical issues with voting machines. Technicians have been called to fix them. There were similar issues in Durres. A machine broke in voting center number 1472 and voting was interrupted for around 30 minutes.
• Problems with the biometric identification system have also been reported in Sarande in the voting centre located at Kindergarten No.1. Reports say that the ID card scanner is working, but the fingerprint recognition is not.

09.58 am

• Observing the elections today are 274 observers from the OSCE/ODIHR. Head of International Election Observer Mission Ursula Gacek will give a press conference at 11.30 this morning.
• The Central Election Commission has approved a list of 64 observers in 12 electoral constituencies.
• The European Union has also deployed a total of 50 teams throughout the country.

09:51 am

• Almost three hours since the polls opened and Tirana leads the way with voter participation. Some 8.36% of those eligible to vote have done so. The lowest turnout so far is in Vlora with 5.24%.

9:43 am

• Prime Minister of Kosovo and leader of the Vetevendosje party Albin Kurti has voted in the Albanian elections this morning. Kurti voted in the Bllok area of Tirana. Three candidates supported by Vetevendosje Albania are running as candidates. Boiken Abazi in Tirana, Kreshnik Mexhani in Gjirokaster, and Iljaz Shehut in Lezhe.

9.40 am

• British Ambassador Duncan Norman is in Durres this morning where he is observing voting. He called on citizens to vote for what they think and want.  He said there are observer groups on the ground, monitoring proceedings.
• Leader of the Democratic Party Lulzim Basha has cast his vote this morning. He said today is a historic day for the country and that it’s a day when Albanians have all power in their hands. He called on the electorate to vote for the nation, their family, and their children.

9:30 am

• The Central Election Commission has reported that the voting process is proceeding normally with no significant issues so far. Spokeswoman Drilona Hoxha stated that there were some issues with electoral identification devices and in some rural locations where infrastructure was difficult, there were no operators. She stated that some 230 polling stations out of 5199 had problems of this kind.

7:40 am

• President Ilir Meta cast his ballot this morning in Tirana. He called on citizens to participate and to vote for both the party of preference and the MP candidate they believe will fight against corruption and not bend to the will of the party leader. He reminded Albanians that voting is a civil duty and democratic right.

Fjalë kyçe:   Albania, albanian election, election, Tirana