Close result in the parliamentary elections in Albania

The extremely close outcome of the struggle necessitated the 140-seat vote count awaiting the Central Election Commission in Tirana, according to media reports.

The Election Commission said this could take up to Tuesday. The first partial results and polls on Election Day did not allow for any real conclusions to be drawn.

The only thing that was certain was that the Socialist Party headed by Prime Minister Edi Rama would once again become the most powerful voting force. It was unclear at first whether this would be enough for Rama to take on a third term in a row.

1% obstacle to entry into Parliament

On Monday morning, the Election Commission published the situation after counting 27% of polling stations. Accordingly, the Socialist Party received nearly 50 percent of the vote, while the opposition Democratic Party received 39 percent. The Socialist Movement for Integration (LSI), allied with the PD, will have seven percent of voters behind, and the Social Democratic Party (PSD) of controversial businessman Tom Doshi 2 percent. In Albania, there is a one percent obstacle to entering parliament.

The partial result hardly allows any conclusions to be drawn about the election result. The information provided by the commission did not reveal how it was distributed across the country. Traditionally, voters in certain parts of the country prefer the Socialist Party, and in other regions the Democratic People’s Party.

According to forecasts by TV anchor Ora News, who based opinion polls on Election Day, the Socialist Party won 68 to 72 seats, while the Conservative National Party won 64 to 68 seats. LSI can count with two to five parliamentary seats, and one or two seats at PSD.