By Canadian Press

Albanian preliminary polls results show a clear win for the ruling Socialists

May 13, 2025 | 6:17 AM

TIRANA, Albania (AP) — Preliminary results in Albania’s parliamentary election on Tuesday give a clear victory to the ruling Socialist Party which attracted voters supporting the country’s uphill effort to join the European Union and Prime Minister Edi Rama’s bid for a fourth term.

With about 96% of the votes counted, Rama’s left-wing Socialists got 52.09% of the votes, or 82 seats in the 140-seat Assembly, or Parliament, followed by the opposition center-right Democratic Party-led coalition of Sali Berisha with 34.44%, or 52 seats. Three other small parties will take the rest.

With that number the left-wing Socialists may govern alone.

Preliminary turnout Sunday was almost 42.21%, or 4% lower than four years ago.

The Central Election Commission, the electoral executive, has said that by law the final results come out 48 hours after the vote ends. The results may be delayed following a request of the opposition not to consider ballots mailed from the diaspora in neighboring Greece, some 53,000, claiming they are manipulated.

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For the first time, those in the diaspora could cast postal votes. About 195,000 mailed in their votes.

Eligible voters in Albania and abroad voted to elect 140 lawmakers for a four-year mandate in the Balkan nation. Because of mass emigration, the country of 2.4 million people has a total of nearly 3.7 million eligible voters.

Diaspora votes from Greece may move number of seats in three or four areas in favor of the leftwing Socialists. The opposition claims they were manipulated by Socialist supporters. The postal company said it has confirmation signatures of all the voters in Greece.

Rama’s Socialist Party says it can deliver EU membership in five years which is an ambitious pledge, while battling Sali Berisha of the conservative Democratic Party opponents who argues that Albania still isn’t ready for the bloc’s membership.

Berisha’s Democrats claim irregularities during the vote and also with those of the diaspora, hinting they may not recognize the results.

On Friday, the opposition will hold a protest against the alleged election manipulation. The protest will coincide with a European Political Community summit being held in Tirana.

“The friends who will come should listen to the people’s voice asking for a free vote and also that a tyrant, a narco-dictator is not allowing them but using all violent tools to grab the vote,” said Berisha.

A joint international observation mission noted that despite being competitive and professionally managed, the election process so far was marked by the ruling party’s misuse of public resources, a confrontational and polarizing tone, the two main political parties using divisive language, untransparent financing, and unbalanced media coverage of smaller parties.

Llazar Semini, The Associated Press