Over the weekend, Albanian politicians kicked off the campaign for the mayoral by-elections of March 6 for the municipalities of Shkoder, Durres, Lushnje, Diber, Vore, and Rrogozhine.
The Central Election Commission (CEC) has allowed parties two weeks to campaign.
Leader of the formal Democratic Party (PD) Lulzim Basha was the first to organize an event for the occasion, rallying Democrats in Shkodra.
There are eighteen candidates vying for the six seats, or three candidates for each municipality, representing the country’s main political forces.
In addition to the ruling Socialist Party and Basha’s PD, a third coalition will be running in these elections. The Refoundation Group of the opposition Democratic Party (PD) led by Sali Berisha will run in the by-elections of March 6 under the banner “House of Freedom”, after entering a coalition with the Socialist Movement for Integration (LSI).
A split occurred in the PD last year, when Basha excluded Berisha from the PD parliamentary group after the US barred him from entering the country over corruption allegations. Under the leadership of Berisha, party members voted to dismiss Basha, who responded by expelling Berisha and a number of senior PD officials from the party or its leadership.
Basha’s faction is recognized as the official PD by the Central Election Commission although Berisha claims to have the support of the vast majority of party members.
Today, US Ambassador Yuri Kim made a statement to voters ahead of the upcoming elections. On Twitter, Kim asked voters to consider what they should expect from their candidate if they are sanctioned by the US for corruption.
Questions for candidates: If your main sponsor is someone designated by the US for significant corruption, what exactly are you promising voters? Who will own you if you win and what will you owe them? What should Albanians expect? What should the US expect?
— Ambassador Yuri Kim (@USAmbAlbania) February 21, 2022
Kim also reminded voters in another tweet that “The US has publicly designated four persons in Albania under 7031(c).”
