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Members of the Riksdag observe elections in Albania

Published:

Parliamentary elections will be held in Albania on 11 May. Nine members of the Riksdag are included in an international delegation that will observe the elections. A Swedish member will lead the official mission in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly.  

Members from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA) and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) will participate in the election observation mission on 11 May. Their task is to monitor whether the elections are transparent and conducted in a correct way, by being present in selected parts of the country on election day.

The members will observe the actual election, the sealing of the ballot papers and the counting of the votes in various polling stations. The members of the Riksdag will observe the elections in and around the capital Tirana as well the towns of Sarandë and Berat.

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, OSCE 

Approximately 70 members of parliament from 31 of the OSCE’s member countries will participate in the observation mission. The following eight members of the Swedish delegation to the OSCE PA will participate:

  • Björn Söder (Sweden Democrats)
  • Johan Büser (Social Democratic Party)
  • Carina Ödebrink (Social Democratic Party)
  • Markus Wiechel (Sweden Democrats)
  • Linnéa Wickman (Social Democratic Party)
  • Joar Forssell (Liberal Party)Matheus Enholm (Sweden Democrats)
  • Louise Thunström (Social Democratic Party)

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) is an organisation for security policy dialogue and cooperation in Europe. An important task for the organisation is to observe parliamentary and presidential elections in different countries.

Björn Söder (Sweden Democrats) has been appointed to lead and represent the election observers from the OSCE PA during the observation mission. 

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, PACE

The election observation mission in Albania also includes some 20 members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe’s (PACE) member countries. One member of the Swedish PACE delegation will participate:

  • Boriana Åberg (Moderate Party)

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) works to create common values based on human rights, democracy and the rule of law. As a part of this, members of PACE participate in international election observation missions.

The observation mission in Albania is being arranged in cooperation with the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), the OSCE, the European Parliament and PACE. ODIHR has observers in the country for a longer period, before and after the elections.

Press conference on 12 May 

A press conference will be held in Tirana on 12 May, when a preliminary statement on the election will be issued. The statement will be published on the OSCE PA and PACE websites.

Further information

Contacts for the media

  • Fredrik Svensson, International Senior Adviser, International Department of the Riksdag, telephone: +46 (0)73 096 64 67, email: fredrik.svensson@riksdagen.se
  • Simona de Ciutiis, International Adviser, International Department of the Riksdag, telephone: +46 (0)72 249 60 07, email: simona.de.ciutiis@riksdagen.se
  • Petra Sjöström, International Senior Adviser, International Department of the Riksdag, telephone: +46 (0)72 716 59 25, email: petra.sjostrom@riksdagen.se