Monday, November 03, 2025

About 47 percent of first-time young voters exercised this right in the parliamentary elections of 11 May 2025, marking an increase in participation compared to previous elections. For the first time, this figure also included 4,356 first-time voters from the Diaspora. These data were presented as part of the discussions held today at the Central Election Commission, focusing on strengthening youth electoral education.

This event was organized as part of the CEC’s cooperation with the National Agency of Pre-University Education (AKAP) and the Academy of Political Studies (APS) to educate around 20,000 high school graduates across the country who earned the right to vote.

The Election Commissioner, Mr. Ilirjan Celibashi, together with the Head of the Council of Europe Office in Tirana, Ms. Giulia Re, the Deputy German Ambassador, Mr. Thilo Schroeter, and the Executive Director of the Academy of Political Studies, Mr. Erjon Tase, emphasized the need for a more systemic approach to the education of first-time voters, as well as extending electoral education to future commissioners and trainers, contributing to the improvement of election standards.

Discussions among other stakeholders present at the roundtable focused on enhancing the outreach of educational activities to young people and on the formal inclusion of electoral education within the civic education curriculum of the 9-year pre-university system.

The roundtable also served as an opportunity to promote the participation of first-time voters in the partial mayoral elections of 9 November in Vlora, Tepelena, Mat, Cerrik, and Berat.

The campaign is implemented within the framework of the Council of Europe Office in Tirana project “Strengthening Election Integrity in Albania”, financially supported by the Federal Republic of Germany.