Albania Changes Election Rules in Defiance of EU Recommendations
- Changes benefit premier Rama’s ruling Socialist Party
- EU has called for election, financing, rule-of-law reforms
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Albania’s ruling party pushed through changes to voting rules ahead of next year’s elections, flouting European Union recommendations and potentially complicating the nation’s chances of starting accession talks soon.
Lawmakers of Premier Edi Rama’s Socialist Party backed changes to the constitution banning pre-election coalitions, news portal www.albaniandailynews.com reported Thursday. The change prevents smaller parties from joining forces to campaign together while still staying apart, which hurts their chances running against the dominant Socialists. The country’s main opposition groups have boycotted parliament since 2019.