ALBANIA
CONSTITUTION OF ALBANIA
Part One--Basic Principles
1. Albania is a parliamentary republic.
2. The Republic of Albania is a unitary and indivisible state.
3. Governance is based on a system of elections that are free, equal, general and periodic.
Chapter III--Political Rights and Freedoms
1.Every citizen who has reached the age of 18, even on the date of the elections, has the right to vote and to be elected.
2.Citizens who have been declared mentally incompetent by a final court decision do not have the right to vote.
3.Convicts who are serving a prison sentence have only the right to vote.
4.The vote is personal, equal, free and secret.
Part Three--The Assembly
Chapter I--Election and Term
1.The Assembly consists of 140 deputies. One hundred deputies are elected directly in single member electoral zones with an approximately equal number of voters. orty deputies are elected from multi-name lists of parties or party coalitions according to their ranking.
2.The total number of deputies of a party or a party coalition shall be, to the closest possible extent, proportional to the valid votes won by them on the national scale in the first round of elections.
3.Parties that receive less than 2.5 per cent, and party coalitions that receive less than 4 per cent, of the valid votes on the national scale in the first round of elections do not benefit from the respective multi-name list.
1.The Assembly is elected for four years.
2.Elections for the Assembly are held 60 to 30 days before the end of the mandate and not later than 45 days after its dissolution.
3.The mandate of the Assembly continues until the first meeting of the new Assembly. In this interval, the Assembly may not issue laws or take decisions, except when extraordinary measures have been established.
The mandate of the Assembly is extended only in case of war and for so long as it continues. When the Assembly has been dissolved, it re-convenes.
Chapter II--The Deputies
1. Candidates for deputy may be presented only by political parties, coalitions of parties, and by voters.
2.The rules for the designation of candidates for deputy, for the organization and conduct of elections, and for the definition of electoral zones and the conditions of validity for elections are regulated by the electoral law.
1.Without resigning from duty, the following may not run as candidates or be elected deputies:
a. judges and prosecutors;
b. military servicemen on active duty;
c. staff of the police and of the national security;
ç. diplomatic representatives;
d. mayors of municipalities and communes as well as prefects in the places where they carry out their duties;
dh. chairmen and members of the electoral commissions;
e.the President of the Republic and the high officials of the state administration contemplated by law.
2. A mandate won in violation of paragraph 1 of this article is invalid.
Part Four--The President of the Republic
1. The President of the Republic is the Head of State and represents the unity of the people.
2. Only an Albanian citizen by birth who has resided in Albania for not less than the past 10 years and who has reached the age of 40 may be elected President.
1. A candidate for President is proposed to the Assembly by a group of not less than 20 of its members. A member is not permitted to take part in more than one proposing group.
2. The President of the Republic is elected by the Assembly by secret ballot and without debate by a majority of three-fifths of all its members.
3. When this majority is not reached in the first ballot, a second ballot takes place within 7 days from the day of the first ballot.
4. When this majority is not reached even in the second ballot, a third ballot takes place within 7 days.
5. When there is more than one candidate and none of them has received the required majority, within 7 days, a fourth ballot takes place between the two candidates who have received the greatest number of votes.
6. If even in the fourth ballot neither of the two candidates has received the required majority, a fifth ballot takes place.
7. If even in the fifth ballot neither of the two candidates has received the required majority, the Assembly is dissolved and new general elections take place within 60 days.
8. The new Assembly elects the President pursuant to the procedure contemplated in paragraphs 1 to 7 of this article. If even the new Assembly fails to elect the President, the Assembly is dissolved and new general elections take place within 60 days.
9. The subsequent Assembly elects the President of the Republic by a majority of all its members.
1. The President of the Republic is in every case elected for 5 years, with the right to be reelected only once.
2. The procedure for the election of the President begins no later than 30 days before the end of the previous presidential mandate.
3. The President begins his duties after he takes the oath before the Assembly, but not before the mandate of the President who is leaving has been completed. The President takes this oath:
“I swear that I will obey the Constitution and laws of the country, I will respect the rights and freedoms of citizens, I will protect the independence of the Republic, and I will serve the general interest and the progress of the Albanian People.” The President may add:“So help me God!”
4. A President who resigns before the end of his mandate may not be a candidate in the presidential election that takes place after his resignation.
The President also exercises these powers:
a. he addresses messages to the Assembly;
b.he exercises the right of pardon according to law;
c. he grants Albanian citizenship and permits it to be relinquished according to law;
ç. he grants decorations and titles of honor according to law;
d. he grants the highest military ranks according to law;
dh. on the proposal of the Prime Minister, he appoints and withdraws plenipotentiary representatives of the Republic of Albania to other states and international organizations;
e.he accepts letters of credential and the withdrawal of diplomatic representatives of other states and international organizations accredited to the Republic of Albania;
ë. he enters into international agreements according to law;
f. on the proposal of the Prime Minister, he appoints the director of the intelligence service of the state;
g.he nominates the Chairman of the Academy of Sciences and the rectors of universities pursuant to law;
gj. he sets the date of the elections for the Assembly, for the organs of local power and for the conduct of referenda;
h. he requests opinions and information in writing from the directors of state institutions for issues that relate to their duties.
Part Six--Local Government
1. The representative organs of the basic units of local government are the councils, which are elected every three years by general direct elections and by secret ballot.
2. The executive organ of a municipality or commune is the mayor, who is elected directly by the people in the manner contemplated in paragraph 1 of this article.
3. Only citizens with permanent residence in the territory of the respective local unit have the right to be elected to the local councils and as mayor of the municipality or commune.
4. The organs of local government units have the right to form unions and joint institutions with one another for the representation of their interests, to cooperate with local units of other countries, and to be represented in international organizations of local governments.
1. A directly elected organ of a local government unit may be dissolved or discharged by the Council of Ministers for serious violations of the Constitution or the laws.
2. The dissolved or discharged organ may complain, within 15 days, to the Constitutional Court, in which case the decision of the Council of Ministers is suspended.
3. If the right to complain is not exercised within 15 days, or if the Constitutional Court upholds the decision of the Council of Ministers, the President of the Republic sets a date for elections of the respective local unit.
Part Eleven--Referendum
1. The people, through 50,000 citizens entitled to vote, have the right to a referendum for the abrogation of a law, and to request the President of the Republic to call a referendum on issues of special importance.
2. The Assembly, on the proposal of not less than one-fifth of the deputies or on the proposal of the Council of Ministers, can decide that an issue or a draft law of special importance be submitted to referendum.
3. Principles and procedures for conducting a referendum, and its validity, are provided by law.
1. A law approved by referendum is promulgated by the President of the Republic.
2. Issues related to the territorial integrity of the Republic of Albania, the limitation of fundamental human rights and freedoms, the budget, taxes and financial obligations of the state, the imposition or lifting of a state of emergency, a declaration of war or peace, and amnesty cannot be submitted to a referendum.
3. A referendum on the same issue cannot be repeated before three years have passed.
1. Within 60 days, the Constitutional Court reviews preliminarily the constitutionality of the issues submitted to referendum according to article 150, paragraphs 1 and 2, article 151, paragraphs 2 and 3, and article 177, paragraphs 4 and 5.
2. The importance of the special issues contemplated in paragraphs 1 and 2 of article 150 is not subject to adjudication by the Constitutional Court.
3. The President of the Republic sets the date of the referendum within 45 days after the announcement of a positive decision of the Constitutional Court or after the expiration of the period within which the Constitutional Court should have rendered its decision. During the year, referenda can be held on only one day.
Part Twelve--Central Election Commission
The Central Election Commission is a permanent organ that prepares, supervises, manages, and verifies all aspects of elections and referenda and announces their results.
1. The Commission consists of seven members elected for a 7-year term. Two members are elected by the Assembly, two by the President of the Republic, and three other members by the High Council of Justice.
2. The composition of the Central Election Commission is renewed every three years pursuant to the procedure established by law.
3. Membership in the Commission is incompatible with any other state or political activity.
4. Electoral subjects appoint representatives to the Commission. They do not have the right to vote.
5. A member of the Commission enjoys the same immunity as a member of the High Court.
6.The Commission has its own budget.
Part Sixteen--Extraordinary Measures
1. Extraordinary measures can be imposed because of a state of war, a state of emergency, or a state of natural disaster and last for as long as these conditions continue.
2. The principles of operation of public organs, and the extent of the restriction of human rights and freedoms during the existence of the situations that require extraordinary measures, are defined by law.
3. A law shall define the principles, areas, and manner of compensation for losses caused as a result of the restriction of human rights and freedoms during the period in which extraordinary measures are imposed.
4. Actions taken as a result of extraordinary measures shall be in proportion to the level of risk and shall aim at re-establishing conditions for the normal operation of the state as soon as possible.
5. During situations that require the imposition of extraordinary measures, none of the following acts may be changed: the Constitution, the laws on the election of the Assembly and of local government organs, and the laws on extraordinary measures.
6. During the period of extraordinary measures, local elections may not be held, a referendum may not be held, and a new President of the Republic may not be elected. Local elections may be held only where the extraordinary measures are not in effect.