A delegation from the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, with Ms Gunn-Marit Helgesen (Norway, EPP/CCE) as Rapporteur and representative of the Congress on the Venice Commission’s Council for Democratic Elections, will carry out a remote election observation mission on 24 and 25 February ahead of the partial local elections scheduled for 6 March 2022 in Albania.
The delegation will hold online briefings with representatives of the international community in Tirana, the Chair of the Central Electoral Commission, Mr Ilirjan Celibashi, and with the Albanian delegation to the Congress and local government associations.
Video briefings are also planned with domestic NGOs, media and with representatives of political subjects running in the elections of 6 March.
Congress delegation:
- Ms Gunn-Marit HELGESEN, Norway (R, EPP/CCE), Rapporteur
- Mr Stewart DICKSON, United-Kingdom, (R, ILDG)
- Mr Vladimir PREBILIC, Slovenia (L, SOC/V/PD)
- Ms Randi MONDORF, Denmark (R, ILDG)
- Dr Pavel PSEJA, Member of the Congress Group of Independent Experts on the European Charter of Local Self-government
See also: Congress webpage on the observation of local and regional elections
Contact:
Renate ZIKMUND
Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe
renate.zikmund@coe.int
Upon request of the competent authorities, the Congress observes local and regional elections in Council of Europe member States and sometimes beyond. The observation of local elections is complementary to the political monitoring process of the European Charter of Local Self-Government, which is the cornerstone of local democracy in Europe.
In the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Congress has adopted a report on local and regional elections in times of crisis and implemented a strategy including alternatives to sending observer delegations to the field. The remote observation procedure remains exceptional and is not intended to replace genuine election observation missions.
