According to draft acts prepared by the State Election Commissioner, it is proposed that November 1st be the opening date of the election campaign, thus leaving candidates with only 8 days to campaign.
By-elections are expected to be held in 6 municipalities in the country; Tirana, Vlora, Berat, Tepelena, Cerrik and Mat. In Tirana, the process is being legally challenged in the Constitutional Court by Erion Veliaj, who considers his dismissal from the Council of Ministers to be unconstitutional.
The CEC proposes that political parties that will participate in the elections register by October 11, while for the names of candidates, October 19 is proposed as the deadline for submitting candidacy documents.
The procedural deadlines also require electoral coalitions to submit the registration request by October 16, while the Civil Registry offices in these municipalities must compile voter lists no later than October 6. The voter identification process will be carried out through electronic identification devices (IDs) in all polling stations.
The decree of the President of the Republic setting the date of the elections in these municipalities came immediately after Prime Minister Edi Rama officially notified him of the vacancies and why some of them had been vacant for several months.
In Tirana, the elections are contested after a dismissal procedure initiated by the Municipal Council and approved by the Council of Ministers was appealed by Veliaj's lawyers based on Article 115 of the Constitution, which provides for the 'suspension' of dismissal pending a court decision.
The mayors of Mat, Berat and Tepelena resigned in March to pave the way for their candidacies as MPs, the mayor of Vlora resigned a few weeks ago after the prime minister directly intervened in his powers by demanding the dismissal of municipal directors. In Cerrik, mayor Andis Salla resigned from his post after being selected by Prime Minister Edi Rama as Minister of Agriculture in the new government. /BIRN/
