EU Gives Albania Election Thumbs Down

balkan insight

20 JUL 2011 / 10:26

Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule on Tuesday in Brussels pronounced Albania’s May 8 local elections for Tirana "not good".

Besar Likmeta Tirana

“The elections in Tirana were not good, as they demonstrated beyond doubt that the electoral framework needs to be reformed,” Fule told a joint press conference with the Albanian foreign and EU integration ministers, after a meeting of the Stabilization and Association council between Albania and the EU. ...more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/albania-disputed-poll-receives-failing-grade-from-the-eu

Basha Confirmed Victor in Tirana Mayor Race

balkan insight
08 JUL 2011 / 12:41

After two months of legal wrangling, Albania’s Electoral College has rejected the last opposition appeal challenging the razor-thin victory of the ruling party candidate in the disputed Tirana race.

Besar Likmeta Tirana

The court specializing in election disputes on Friday rejected the fifth Socialist appeal over the race for the Tirana mayoralty in the May 8 local elections. ...more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/lulzim-basha-will-be-the-next-tirana-mayor

Albania Court Postpones Election Ruling

balkan insight
07 JUL 2011 / 10:39

Albania’s Electoral College delayed until Thursday a ruling in the disputed mayoral race of Tirana, after the Socialist opposition withdrew one of its two appeals challenging the narrow victory of ruling party candidate Lulzim Basha.

Besar Likmeta Tirana

The Socialists stopped short of demanding a new election, instead asking the specialized court for election disputes to order the Central Election Commission, CEC, to hear their appeal regarding alleged irregularities in the election....more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/albania-court-postpones-election-ruling

Albania Opposition Seeks Poll Repeat in Key Tirana Race

balkan insight
04 JUL 2011 / 10:13

The Socialist opposition has filed what is considered its final appeal with the Electoral College on Thursday, seeking a repeat of the election for the Tirana mayor’s office.

Besar Likmeta Tirana

The appeal launched by the Socialists will be heard by the Electoral College, Albania’s specialized elections appeals court on July 6, ending nearly two months of legal wrangling over the disputed Tirana race. ...more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/albania-opposition-seeks-poll-repeat-in-key-tirana-race

Tense Climate Blamed For Albania Poll Rows

balkan insight
30 JUN 2011 / 15:26
A former head of the Central Electoral Commission says both main parties need to share blame for the endless legal wrangling that has followed the results of the May local elections.

Aristir Lumezi Tirana

Albania’s Central Electoral Commission, CEC, has been at the centre of a political firestorm after May 8 local elections, in which the Socialist opposition ultimately lost the key mayoralty of Tirana. They say the result was manipulated....more...
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http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/tense-political-climate-hampered-albania-poll

Less Drama From Albania’s Socialist Leader

balkan insight
28 JUN 2011 / 18:01

Edi Rama’s strategy of confrontation and gridlock ill-serves his party and his country. Time for a new approach.

By David L. Phillips
There is a time for contestation and a time for reconciliation. After local elections on May 8, Albania is at a fork in the road....more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/less-drama-from-albania-s-socialist-leader

Basha Declared Winner of Contested Tirana Poll

balkan insight
27 JUN 2011 / 08:10

Albania’s Central Electoral Commission has for the second time in as many months declared the ruling party candidate the winner of the hotly contested race for the Tirana mayoralty.

Besar Likmeta Tirana

With four votes in favour and two against, the commission declared Lulzim Basha the winner of the May 8 race for the capital's mayoralty with a 93 vote advantage out of a quarter-million. ...more....
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/basha-declared-winner-of-contested-tirana-poll

Backwards and forwards

the economist
The Balkans and the Europe
New obstacles on the Balkan route towards Brussels

Jun 16th 2011

TIRANA
from the print edition
IN THE western Balkans it is one step forwards, two steps back. Croatia is moving ahead, having won formal approval to become the European Union’s 28th member, probably in mid-2013. But it is a very different story further south. Macedonia is erecting a giant bronze statue of Alexander the Great, a move guaranteed to lose it friends and sympathy, and Albania is snarled in a seemingly unending political crisis.....more....
read more: the economist
http://www.economist.com/node/18836724

Albania Leaders Spar Over Tirana Poll Ruling

balkan insight
15 JUN 2011 / 15:30

Parties exchanged jibes on Tuesday as the final result of the disputed race for the Tirana mayoralty remained in limbo.

Besar Likmeta Tirana
Albanian leaders continued their verbal duels after the Electoral College late on Monday ordered a full recount of contested ballots in Tirana municipality, throwing the final results of the poll back into doubt.....more....
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/mixed-reactions-after-albania-court-ruling-on-disputed-poll

Why everyone is sick of Albania

the economist
Albania's disputed election

Jun 14th 2011, 16:25 by T.J.

TIRANA
RUNNING into a senior European Union official recently, I mentioned I was going to Albania. He muttered something I cannot repeat here and walked off, apparently irritated even by the mention of the country’s name. You can understand why. On May 8th the country voted in municipal elections. Over a month later we still don’t know who the mayor of Tirana is. If Albanians can’t even hold a local vote without the risk of violent disruption, think Eurocrats, they should not expect any love from Brussels....more.....
read more: the economist
http://www.economist.com/blogs/easternapproaches/2011/06/albanias-disputed-election

Albania Court Orders Recount of Contested Ballots

balkan insight
14 JUN 2011 / 12:39

The Electoral College late Monday night ordered a full recount of the contested ballots in the key race for mayor of Tirana, throwing the results of the poll back into doubt.

Besar Likmeta Tirana
The decision came after a Socialist opposition appeal which contested several decisions by the Central Election Commission, CEC, including the one that declared the ruling party candidate the winner of the race for the municipality of Tirana. ...more....
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/albania-court-orders-full-recount-of-contested-ballots

Albania’s political crisis, a deadlock in the way of European integration

europe's world
 02/06/2011
Author: Alba Cela
Recommendations for EU involvement in Albania

Introduction
On May 10th the observing mission of OSCE/ODHIR called the local elections process of May 8th in Albania “competitive, transparent”[1] and admitted that the Election Day was relatively calm. However they emphasized once again the aggressive climate of the electoral campaign which marked the process and influenced some of its problems. Few could believe that after one of the most violent and incident prone campaign that Albania has seen in roughly twenty years of democracy, a normal election day would follow. However that did not turn out to be good news either since A very slow counting process followed raising political tensions especially in the two largest cities, Tirana and Durres. The final decision of who is going to be Tirana’a mayor stands now on the hands of the Electoral College, the highest authority to decide on electoral issues, since the Central Election Committee reversed the first results which gave Edi Rama, current opposition leader and mayor, a thin victory of plus ten votes. In a disputed process contested by the opposition members at the CEC, part of the votes cast in the capital were recounted and gave a preliminary victory to the other contender, Lulzim Basha. Protesters including MPs camped outside the CEC gates for days and the tensions have brought Albania as the Economist argues “on the brink of a return to violence.”[2] With the rationale that given the ongoing situation there can be no fruitful discussions about Albania’s EU integration, President of the EU Commission Jose Manuel Barroso and Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule cancelled their scheduled visits to Tirana.....more....
read more: europe's world
http://www.europesworld.org/NewEnglish/Home_old/CommunityPosts/tabid/809/PostID/2558/AlbaniaspoliticalcrisisadeadlockinthewayofEuropeanintegration.aspx

Albania Court to Hear Final Appeal on Disputed Poll

balkan insight
08 Jun 2011 / 13:04

Albania’s Electoral College on June 13 will hear the final opposition Socialist appeal over the disputed results of the race for mayor of Tirana.

Besar Likmeta

Tirana
In the new appeal, the Socialists accuse Albania’s Central Electoral Commission, CEC, of breaching the constitutional standards of the poll.
The Electoral College, headed by appeals judge Dhurata Haveri, will hear the case. The panel will hand down the final verdict on the Tirana race, in effect determining the new mayor of the Albanian capital.   ....more....

read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/albania-court-to-hear-final-appeal-on-disputed-poll

Albania Court Rejects Appeal over Disputed Poll

balkan insight
06 Jun 2011 / 12:42

Albania’s Electoral College rejected late on Friday a second opposition appeal over the contested poll for mayor of Tirana, leading the ruling party candidate ever closer to the city's top office.

Besar Likmeta

Tirana

Although the opposition Socialists are expected to launch yet another appeal challenging the validity of Lulzim Basha's victory, their chances of success look slim. Depending on the time the appeals court will need to evaluate the new Socialist challenge, the final result for the Tirana race is expected to come within 10 days....more....

read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/albania-court-rejects-opposition-appeal-on-disputed-poll

Albania Court to Rule on Election Dispute

balkan insight
03 Jun 2011 / 11:29

Albania’s Electoral College will rule on Friday on an opposition appeal that will decide the outcome of the contested poll for mayor of Tirana.

Besar Likmeta

Tirana
The specialized court for elections disputes will decide the winner of the Tirana race between Socialist opposition leader and incumbent mayor Edi Rama and ruling party candidate Lulzim Basha....more...

read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/albania-court-to-rule-on-elections-dispute

Albania Re-Evaluates Ballots from Disputed Poll

balkan insight
01 Jun 2011 / 16:44

The Central Electoral Commission has begun a recount of disputed votes from 26 ballot boxes in the Tirana mayoral race at the request of the ruling Democratic Party.

Besar Likmeta

Tirana
“The Democratic Party requested on Monday that the CEC re-evaluate all [contested] ballots contained in 26 voting centers, and for the outcome of that recount to be reflected in the total result for mayor of Tirana,” CEC spokesperson Leonard Olli said in a statement on Tuesday....more...

read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/albania-re-evaluates-new-ballots-from-disputed-poll

Electoral College to decide Tirana mayoral race

se times

31/05/2011

The widening rift between Albania's main parties threatens to cause further paralysis.

By Linda Karadaku for Southeast European Times in Tirana – 31/05/11 

With political tensions high over the disputed mayoral election results in Tirana, Albanians are awaiting a ruling expected on Friday (June 3rd) by the Electoral College. The opposition has filed an appeal there over the Central Election Commission's (CEC) decision to count ballots that voters cast in the wrong boxes....more...  


read more: se times
http://www.setimes.com/cocoon/setimes/xhtml/en_GB/features/setimes/features/2011/05/31/feature-02

Election Result Dispute Dims EU Albania’s Hopes

balkan insight
25 May 2011 / 08:57

A fierce row over the outcome of the May 8 local elections in Tirana is likely to play badly for Albania’s chances of obtaining EU candidate status in the autumn.

Dardan Malaj

Tirana...more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/election-result-dispute-dims-eu-albania-s-hopes

Albania Court Postpones Election Dispute Ruling

balkan insight
27 May 2011 / 17:17

Albania’s Electoral College decided on Friday to postpone its ruling on the contested race for Tirana mayor until June 3, after lawyers for the Socialist opposition changed their appeal.

Besar Likmeta

Tirana
The specialized court for elections disputes also announced that a new panel of judges will hear the final appeal, which will decide the winner of the Tirana race between Socialist opposition leader and incumbent mayor Edi Rama and ruling party candidate Lulzim Basha....more...

read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/albania-court-postpones-election-dispute-to-june-3

Albania Court Rejects Opposition Appeal Over Disputed Poll

balkan insight
26 May 2011 / 14:45

Albania’s Electoral College rejected on Thursday a challenge to the results of the May 8 race for mayor of Tirana, narrowly won by the ruling Democratic Party candidate Lulzim Basha.

Besar Likmeta

Tirana

Albania's Electoral Commission, CEC, on Monday declared Basha the winner of the race for Tirana mayor in the May 8 local elections, following a controversial recount of stray ballots....more....

read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/albania-court-rejects-opposition-appeal-over-disputed-poll