During the May 2011 municipal elections in Albania – OSCE photo
After boycotting the 2019 municipal elections, the Albanian opposition returns to present itself to voters at the next electoral round on 14 May. The PD – historic adversary of the socialists in government – will however participate divided into two opposing sides
Prime Minister Edi Rama’s Socialist Party, in government for ten years, has been able to exercise almost absolute power even at the local administration level in the last four years. 60 of the country’s 61 town halls are led by socialists, following a 2019 boycott of town halls by the opposition coalition led by the Democratic Party. A political calculation that has led to a delegitimization in front of the voters and, in the last period, to a vortex of fragmentation and clashes between currents within the PD.
One party, many leaders
After 9 years at the helm of the Democratic Party, Lulzim Basha publicly resigned in March 2022, and the historic leader Sali Berisha, now 80, has re-emerged on the political scene. In a short time Berisha proclaimed himself at the head of the party, starting a so-called “re-foundation” process which however caused the party to split into two opposing currents. Among the various reasons weighs the fact that the presence of Berisha at the head of the Democratic Party calls into question the alliance with Western partners and one of the cornerstones of the justice reform, the fight against corruption. In 2021 Berisha was officially expelled from the PD parliamentary group in parliament following his declaration of persona non grata by the Biden administration and the following year also by Great Britain, on charges of his involvement in corruption. The expulsion decision was taken by Basha, definitively cracking the long “idyllic” relationship between the two politicians.
Berisha’s direct opponent within the Democrats is currently Enkelejd Alibeaj, vice president of the party during Basha’s leadership. He represents the more moderate wing of the PD and is legally the holder of the “reins” of the party. To further complicate the dynamics within the Democratic Party, the ex-leader Basha never formalized his resignation with the competent authority (the Court of Tirana), still resulting on paper at the head of the party. Moreover, a few days before his resignation, he issued an authorization (with legal value) to Alibeaj to register the party in view of the 2023 municipal elections.
At the beginning of the year, the Central Electoral Commission received two requests for registration of the PD, with the relative logo and stamp, respectively from Berisha and Alibeaj, with the latter having won. Formally and legally divided, the two souls of the PD will compete in the elections on opposing sides. The candidates proposed by Berisha will attend under the logo of the “Together we win” coalition, led by the Freedom Party led by Ilir Meta, which currently holds 4 seats in parliament. Until last year, Meta’s party was called the Movimento Socialista per l’Integrazione (Socialist Movement for Integration), born as a left-wing party and purely family-run. Leadership of the party was alternated between Meta and his wife Monika Kryemadhi, and he forged alliances with both Socialists and Democrats over the years. Alibeaj’s PD, for its part, initially presented 16 mayoral candidates out of 61 municipalities, although some in the meantime withdrew from the race with the excuse of not wanting to compete with their “colleagues” proposed by Berisha.
The decline of the right
Faced with rising prices, unemployment, migratory trends and the general tiredness caused by the decade of socialist government, the PD has missed the opportunity to renew itself and offer a credible political alternative. The dynamics of the last few months have once again highlighted the total detachment of the main political figures from the reality in which the country navigates and the strong dominance of personal interests for seats over citizens.
Nowadays the PD is not able to combine a vision for the future of Albania, becoming a factor of change and hope for young people. On the other hand, during this pre-election phase, the two opposing figures of the PD invest part of their political capital in mutual accusations, aiming at the sinking of the other, and paradoxically leaving the Socialist Party in peace, which should in theory be their main political opponent.
Few alternatives
In a meeting in Corizza, Berisha declared that “these elections […] in terms of importance they surpass all the elections held to date, after those of March 22, 1992”, while his ally Meta in another forum added that they will be able to obtain the 3 main bastions, that of Tirana, Durres and Elbasan. An old political rhetoric and an end in itself.
For its part, the socialists are aiming to reconfirm the leadership of at least 45 out of 61 municipalities. “In the conditions we find ourselves in, the PS will win”, commented Damian Gjiknuri, general secretary of the party.
With the disintegration of the PD, the socialist party will most likely score another significant success also in this electoral round. But more importantly, citizens invited to the polls on May 14 will have few choices, both in terms of political alternatives and new candidates. In fact, the socialists are nominating the same outgoing mayors in more than two thirds of the municipalities, including the main cities. A situation that for many observers will lead to an increase in abstention.
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