The Central Election Commission has sent a letter to political parties regarding electronic voting for the 2025 elections.
In this letter, it is clarified that among the possibility of developing electronic voting in 5 districts, the CEC has seen fit to develop this process only in two districts, in the district of Durrës and that of Elbasan.
Of the political parties that the CEC has asked to join, so far the Movement for National Development Party, headed by Dashamir Shehi, and the Socialist Party, headed by Edi Rama, have reacted.
Both these parties have agreed with the development of the electronic voting process in Durrës and Elbasan, but have requested that electronic voting be developed in Tirana as well.
The Socialist Party has listed the following reasons why Tirana should be included in the electronic voting process:
Tirana, as the largest district in Albania, produces a significant number of mandates (37 mandates in open multi-nominal lists). Based on this fact, the ballot paper would be administered with difficulty by voters and would create objective obstacles, creating confusion in the voting process.
On the other hand, electronic voting would bring facilities not only in the voting process but also in the announcement of the final result, which in this case will be considered fair and without claims of invalidity arising from the counting of votes.
Electronic voting is now a process recognized by the citizens of the Republic of Albania. Based on the fact that Tirana was the first to implement the pilot model of electronic identification, voting and counting in the 2021 elections, unit 10, an experience has been created by the citizens in this process.
On the other hand, it is a fact that the region of Tirana offers all the optimal conditions in terms of human resources and infrastructure as a whole for the successful realization of this process.
It is worth mentioning the proximity of the CEC to the electoral districts, as it will be the latter that will train the actors and provide the service for the effective realization of this process.
If you consider it impossible to include the three districts in the electronic voting, due to the time you have until the date of the elections for the Assembly of Albania is decreed, we propose that you approve as a single district, the district of Tirana, where you will conduct electronic voting.
For all the reasons presented above, we propose the inclusion of Tirana district, alongside Elbasan and Durrës districts, in the development of electronic voting.
In case of impossibility of including the three regions, we request that the electronic development takes place in the region of Tirana.
