The office of President Ilir Meta has slammed the Constitutional Court ruling that certified the 2019 local elections held in violation of presidential decrees.
In a press conference on Tuesday, the President’s legal advisor, Bledar Dervishi, stated that the ruling failed to resolve the issue by avoiding a detailed review of the request submitted.
Last month, the court ruled that the Association of Albanian Municipalities, who submitted the request to declare the 2019 elections invalid, did not have the jurisdiction to ask the Constitutional Court to conduct such a review.
Earlier, the Venice Commission had opined that the court could not review the constitutionality of the 2019 local elections.
Local elections in June 2019 were boycotted by the opposition. President Meta canceled the date and set a new date for elections a few weeks later but the ruling Socialist Party refused to comply with his decision and organized elections on the canceled date nevertheless. They essentially ran uncontested and won all municipalities.
Currently, six municipalities in Albania do not have an elected mayor as they were fired due to their criminal pasts or passed away.
Following yesterday’s declaration by the President’s office, it remains unclear whether he will set a date for elections in these municipalities.
