Albania’s Central Election Commission (CEC) has proposed administrative penalties and fines against several political parties and candidates following an audit of campaign financing for the May 11, 2025 parliamentary elections.

Auditors issued “qualified opinions” for multiple political entities, citing financial irregularities, lack of transparency, and failure to properly report campaign funds. In one of the most serious cases, a candidate from the Party for Justice, Integration and Unity (PDIU) has been ordered to return more than 1.1 million lekë and pay an additional fine exceeding 2.2 million lekë for accepting donations from prohibited donors.

The audit report highlights widespread discrepancies in campaign financing and reporting practices. The Freedom Party received a qualified opinion after auditors identified expenses unrelated to the election campaign, as well as missing information regarding the financiers of several candidates. The report found approximately 91,000 lekë in non-campaign expenses and 495,000 lekë in funds without identified donors.

The Socialist Party also faced scrutiny after auditors found inconsistencies involving 169 campaign offices between official financial reports and on-site monitoring data. Meanwhile, six Democratic Party candidates were accused of failing to comply with standard financial reporting formats.

Agron Shehaj’s “Mundësia” party was found to have discrepancies involving 21 campaign offices, while Lulzim Basha’s Euro-Atlantic Coalition was cited for misuse of a dedicated campaign bank account.

The “Lëvizja Bashkë” movement received a qualified opinion due to the absence of a dedicated bank account, undeclared self-financing, and significant inconsistencies in the reporting of campaign offices.

The report also identified individual violations by candidates on multi-name electoral lists. The CEC has proposed fines ranging from 500,000 to 1 million lekë for 10 candidates accused of failing to follow standard financial reporting procedures.