1st Legislature of Albania
The first legislative term of the Albanian state, represented by the National Council and convened in Tirana in 1920.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
The 1st Legislature of Albania was the first legislative term of the Albanian state and is generally regarded as the starting point of Albania's parliamentary history. It operated through the National Council, known in Albanian as the Këshilli Kombëtar and also referred to at the time as the Senate or Senati. The body was created in the aftermath of the Congress of Lushnjë, which met from 21 to 31 January 1920 during a period of serious political and territorial uncertainty for Albania. After the First World War, Albania faced the possibility of partition by neighbouring states. Foreign forces, principally Italian and secondarily French troops, remained present in the country, while the government based in Durrës was viewed by the political leaders gathered at Lushnjë as unable to protect Albanian national interests. The Congress declared the Durrës government invalid and established a new cabinet headed by Sulejman Delvina. Its institutional settlement created a four-member High Council, or collective regency, together with the National Council as the country's legislative institution. The legislature's immediate predecessor in concept was the proposed Council of Elders, or Pleqësia, envisaged by the Congress of Durrës in December 1918. That body never successfully convened because of internal divisions. The National Council established at Lushnjë therefore represented a more effective attempt to create a functioning national parliament. Its first sitting took place in Tirana on 27 March 1920, shortly after Tirana had been designated the capital. Thirty-seven members were initially selected directly by delegates to the Congress of Lushnjë. Because of replacements and members joining at later sessions, 41 individuals served during the legislature's temporary term. The council was not elected through a general national election. Its mandate was intended to last only until an electoral system could be established and elections organised. Nevertheless, it exercised significant constitutional and political functions. It affirmed principles of parliamentary government by appointing and dismissing ministers and by subjecting the government to parliamentary oversight. The Statute of Lushnjë, approved by the congress on 31 January 1920, served as the foundational constitutional law of the new state and is widely considered Albania's first constitution. A further major achievement was the electoral law approved on 5 December 1920. It provided for an indirect, two-round electoral process. In the first stage, men in Albania's administrative districts would select delegates at a ratio of one delegate for every 500 men. In the second stage, those delegates would participate in selecting 75 members of the National Council, approximately one representative for every 12,000 eligible voters. The law helped create the institutional conditions for Albania's first political parties, including the Popular Party led by Fan Noli and the Progressive Party associated with Hoxhë Kadriu and Shefqet Vërlaci. The National Council's legislative activity ended on 20 December 1920. It was dissolved to permit the country's first elections, held on 21 April 1921. The succeeding legislature represented Albania through 78 deputies. Although brief and transitional, the first legislature established a national parliamentary forum, introduced early mechanisms of executive accountability, and provided the constitutional and electoral framework for the development of Albania's interwar parliamentary institutions.
History
The origins of the 1st Legislature of Albania lay in the political crisis that followed the First World War. Albania's sovereignty and territorial integrity were uncertain, neighbouring states posed a continuing partition threat, and foreign military forces remained active in the country. The government operating from Durrës was associated with a pro-Italian orientation and was judged by many Albanian political leaders to be incapable of providing an effective national authority. From 21 to 31 January 1920, Albanian representatives met at the Congress of Lushnjë. The congress rejected the authority of the Durrës government, formed a new cabinet under Sulejman Delvina, and established a new state structure. A four-member High Council was created as a collective head of state, while the National Council was assigned the role of parliament. This arrangement made the National Council the institutional foundation of the first Albanian legislative term. The idea of a national representative council had appeared earlier at the Congress of Durrës in December 1918. That meeting proposed a Council of Elders, or Pleqësia, which would have functioned in a senate-like capacity. Internal political divisions prevented the proposed body from meeting. The Lushnjë settlement consequently marked a practical, rather than merely conceptual, beginning for Albanian parliamentary government. The National Council convened in Tirana on 27 March 1920. Tirana had recently been selected as the capital and became the seat of the new legislature. Thirty-seven members were chosen directly by the delegates of the Congress of Lushnjë. The council was conceived as temporary: its members were to serve until a broader electoral process could be organised. Through substitutions and later appointments, 41 people served during the term. Mytesim Këlliçi chaired the opening session, after which Xhemal Naipi was elected chairman. Naipi held that position from 29 March until 27 May 1920. Despite its short existence and provisional composition, the legislature helped define the operating principles of Albania's parliamentary system. It exercised authority over the government, including the ability to appoint and dismiss it, and developed the practice of parliamentary control over executive action. These functions were important because they established a relationship between the legislature and cabinet at a time when the Albanian state was still consolidating its independence and administrative structure. The constitutional basis for the new political order was the Statute of Lushnjë, approved by the congress on 31 January 1920. The statute is generally regarded as the first constitution of the Albanian state. The National Council also worked on the legal framework needed to replace its temporary mandate with an elected legislature. Its most consequential electoral measure was adopted on 5 December 1920. The law created an indirect two-stage voting process: men in each administrative district would first choose delegates according to a ratio of one delegate for every 500 men, and those delegates would then participate in the selection of 75 members of the National Council. The electoral law also contributed to the emergence of organised party politics. The Popular Party, led by Fan Noli, and the Progressive Party, associated with Hoxhë Kadriu and Shefqet Vërlaci, became the first two political parties formed within this developing parliamentary environment. Their emergence indicated that the council's work was beginning to move beyond temporary state organisation toward competitive institutional politics. The legislature's mandate ended on 20 December 1920, when the National Council was dissolved in preparation for Albania's first elections. Those elections took place on 21 April 1921, and the succeeding legislature included 78 deputies. The first legislature therefore lasted less than a year, but its historical importance rests in establishing Albania's first functioning parliamentary body, confirming early principles of executive accountability, and preparing the electoral and constitutional foundations of the interwar parliament.
- 1921
First Albanian elections are held
[1]Elections held on 21 April produced the succeeding legislature, which represented the country through 78 deputies.
- 1920
Congress of Lushnjë establishes the National Council
[1]The Congress of Lushnjë replaced the Durrës government and created the National Council as the parliament of the reorganised Albanian state.
- 1920
Statute of Lushnjë is approved
[1]The congress approved the Statute of Lushnjë on 31 January, a constitutional law widely regarded as Albania's first constitution.
- 1920
First sitting of the National Council
[1]The National Council held its inaugural meeting in Tirana on 27 March.
- 1920
Electoral law is enacted
[1]On 5 December, the council adopted an indirect two-round electoral system designed to select a future 75-member National Council.
- 1920
National Council is dissolved
[1]The legislature ended on 20 December to make way for Albania's first elections.
- 1918
Congress of Durrës proposes a Council of Elders
[1]The Congress of Durrës proposed a senate-like Council of Elders, but internal divisions prevented the body from convening.
Products and positioning
A transitional founding legislature of the Albanian state, positioned as the country's first functioning parliamentary institution and as the institutional successor to the failed Council of Elders proposed in 1918.
Brand decisions
1920
Creation of a parliamentary state structureStrategyBackground
The Congress of Lushnjë sought to replace the Durrës government and create a functioning national authority during a period of foreign military presence and territorial uncertainty.
Action taken
It established the High Council as a collective head of state and the National Council as the legislature.
Aftermath
The arrangement provided the institutional basis for Albania's first functioning parliamentary term and subsequent interwar legislatures.
1920
Approval of the Statute of LushnjëOtherBackground
The newly reorganised Albanian state required a constitutional framework for its institutions and political authority.
Action taken
The Congress of Lushnjë approved the Statute of Lushnjë on 31 January.
Aftermath
The statute became the foundational constitutional law of the state and is widely regarded as Albania's first constitution.
1920
Adoption of the indirect electoral lawOtherBackground
The National Council had a temporary mandate and needed a mechanism for creating a successor through elections.
Action taken
On 5 December, it adopted a two-round indirect system involving district delegates and a planned 75-member National Council.
Aftermath
The law enabled preparations for the first Albanian elections and encouraged the formation of the Popular Party and Progressive Party.
Sources1 sources
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