Albania’s ruling Socialist Party, led by Prime Minister Edi Rama, is leading in the country’s parliamentary elections, according to preliminary results reported by Associated Press.
With about 25% of the votes counted, Rama’s Socialists have secured 53% of the vote, while their main rivals — a center-right coalition headed by former Prime Minister Sali Berisha — have received 35%. These results put Rama’s party on track to win the 71 seats needed for a parliamentary majority and to form a government independently.
Voter turnout stood at 42.16%, about 4% lower than in the previous elections.
Roughly 3.7 million Albanians, including voters living abroad, were eligible to elect 140 members of parliament for a four-year term.
The head of the Central Election Commission, Ilirjan Celibashi, stated that the election process was generally peaceful, despite some violations by candidates and their supporters. According to him, these incidents are not expected to affect the final outcome.
During the campaign, Edi Rama highlighted achievements in infrastructure and judicial reforms, and pledged to secure Albania’s accession to the European Union by 2030 — completing negotiations by 2027 and gaining approval from all 27 EU member states.
