The Central Election Commission (CEC) has announced that the collection of ballot packages from diaspora voting will begin on January 2 or, if delayed due to holidays, on January 5.
The clarification was provided by CEC spokesperson Valmir Elezi, who outlined the timelines for completing the verification of results and the counting of votes for members of parliament at Municipal Counting Centers (MCCs).
Vote Counting Timeline Depends on Work Dynamics
Speaking at a press conference, Elezi emphasized that the pace of vote counting varies across municipalities, depending on workload and staffing.
“If vote counting is not completed by December 31 at 12:00 noon, the process will pause due to the holidays and resume on January 1 at 4:00 p.m.,” Elezi said.
He added that the diaspora ballot collection schedule is also affected by public holidays, particularly in countries where postal services may not operate.
“According to the CEC plan, ballot packages will be collected from postal boxes by January 2. If postal services are not operational due to holidays, the collection will take place by January 5,” Elezi explained.
Legal Framework and Transparency
Elezi reiterated that under the Law on General Elections, the counting of ballots for political entities takes place at polling stations, while the counting of votes for parliamentary candidates is conducted at Municipal Counting Centers.
In addition to counting candidate votes, MCCs are also responsible for verifying the results of political entities using official forms completed at polling stations.
“This process is being carried out in all 38 Municipal Counting Centers, operating in two shifts, with full transparency and under the supervision of accredited observers,” Elezi stated.
Preliminary Data on Special Voting Categories
The CEC also released preliminary figures regarding conditional voting, voting by persons with special needs, and out-of-country voting:
- Over 9,900 voters were registered for conditional voting across 57 polling stations in 38 municipalities
- 2,860 voters were registered under the special needs voting program
- From 29 diplomatic missions, 16,165 out of 19,187 registered voters cast their ballots, marking a turnout of 84.24%
- Approximately 58,000 voters were registered for postal voting
- From only two postal boxes in Berlin and Bern, around 18,000 presumed ballot packages have already been collected
Final data on postal voting will be available after the completion of the ballot package retrieval process.
CEC Reaffirms Legal Compliance
The Central Election Commission confirmed that the counting and verification process is being conducted in full compliance with the law, ensuring maximum transparency and institutional oversight.
