Electoral Reform, the Money Debate

Electoral Reform, the Money Debate

Concerns over funding for political parties in the election campaign has driven a wedge between the stances held in the Democratic Party and those held by the internationals.

The DP has indicated they want the election campaign to be 100% state-funded, while foreign experts say it violates “international standards set by the Council of Europe and the Venice Commission.”

There is even opposition within “the United Opposition” as the Socialist Movement for Integration proposes a mixed system, arguing that Albanian taxpayers should not be burdened with costs.

Representatives of the parliamentary opposition hold the same position as the internationals and SMI.

This is the second round of Electoral Reform, in which the OSCE has joined a Democratic Party roundtable with the Socialist Party present. Even the Socialist co-chair of the special commission said they were awaiting a draft written by the United Opposition.

The DP representative, Ivi Kaso, guaranteed that the joint opposition would have a draft ready before the Commission's term ends.

Meanwhile, Bernd Borchardt, the head of the OSCE in Tirana, despite being declared undesirable in the Presidency, stayed away from the media and preferred not to talk about the table organized by the "OSCE office" in Tirana.

EMISIONET