Article 154 of the Constitution of Albania establishes that the CEC is composed of seven members, each with a seven year mandate. Two members are appointed by the Assembly (Parliament), two by the President of the Republic, and three by the High Council of Justice. Under the previous legal framework, these three institutions were given wide discretion in selecting members of the CEC, with the aim of assuring an independent and non-political body.[12] The new Electoral Code, however, in Article 22, gives full control of the nominating procedures to political parties, with the result that three members come from the two major parties/political groups on the governing side, three come from the two major parties/political groups on the opposition side, and one member is consensually proposed by the major parties on the governing and opposition sides.[13]