Albania votes in first election since EU accession talks opened

Albania goes to the polls on Sunday in the country's first parliamentary election since the European Union formally opened accession negotiations in July 2022. Prime Minister Edi Rama, in power since 2013, is seeking a historic fourth consecutive term for his Socialist Party (SP) against a fragmented opposition led by the Democratic Party (DP) of Sali Berisha, a former premier who remains under US and UK sanctions for corruption. The vote will test whether twelve years of Socialist rule have entrenched democratic institutions or simply entrenched the party itself.

The Socialist campaign and the EU horizon

Rama launched the SP campaign on 12 April in Skanderbeg Square beneath a stage built to resemble the EU flag, twelve stars and all. The slogan, "Albania 2030 in the EU", leaves little doubt about the message. "Only we hold Albania's European future in our hands," Rama told supporters, presenting his party as the sole vehicle for membership. The diaspora will vote for the first time, adding an estimated several hundred thousand ballots to the 3.7 million citizens eligible to choose 140 members of parliament.

Political analysts are sceptical. Afrim Krasniqi, executive director of the Albanian Institute for Political Studies, told DW that EU integration is a technical process governed by specific criteria set by Brussels, not a campaign promise. "Using EU integration as an election message harms the real meaning of the process, because Albania needs to implement reforms, build a functional rule of law, fight corruption and go through a broad societal transformation," he said. Elvin Luku, a communications professor at the University of Tirana, was blunter: "Twelve years in power have worn out this government, so the promise of a European Union passport seems to be the only option left to boost the campaign."

An opposition coalition shadowed by sanctions

Berisha's Alliance for a Magnificent Albania brings together the DP and several smaller parties. "This is the strongest coalition Albania has seen in 32 years," Berisha declared in March. The platform promises to raise the average salary to €1,200 and increase pensions by 20%. Yet the coalition's credibility is undermined by its leader's legal status. Berisha was released from house arrest after Albanian prosecutors brought corruption charges, but he remains under investigation domestically and under sanctions from Washington and London for "significant corruption" and undermining democracy. His ally Ilir Meta, former president and leader of the Freedom Party, has been in detention since 2024 on corruption and money-laundering charges.

Krasniqi argues the opposition's candidate lists reveal its true priority: "The list of candidates running for the opposition clearly indicates that the opposition's goal is to secure immunity and protection for figures under investigation rather than to reform itself." Parliamentary immunity would shield elected members from prosecution, a dynamic that has long distorted Albanian politics.

New parties, old rules

Several new formations are contesting the election, notably Levizja Bashke (the Together Movement), rooted in civic activism; Shqiperia behet (Making Albania), born from anti-corruption advocacy; and Mundesia (The Opportunity), led by entrepreneur and former lawmaker Agron Shehaj. Early polls give them limited prospects of crossing the threshold for significant representation, but analysts see their presence as a democratic gain. "For the first time, we are seeing new parties that are not simply branches of the old ones, but that offer voters other alternatives. This helps make politics less centralized," Krasniqi said.

Electoral code amendments introduced a form of preferential voting, allowing voters to express a preference for candidates within a party list. But one-third of each list remains closed, meaning party leaders decide the ranking and voters cannot alter it. Those candidates effectively have guaranteed seats. "What may appear to be an opening for voters is, in fact, a mechanism that reinforces party leadership control and limits genuine competition," Krasniqi explained. Political rivalry has shifted inside the parties, reducing competition between them.

Candidates under investigation in safe seats

The most concrete evidence of that control lies in the candidate lists themselves. Data from Qendresa Qytetare, a civic organisation monitoring public integrity, shows that 15 candidates from the SP and DP are currently under investigation by the Special Anti-Corruption and Organized Crime Structure (SPAK). Seven of them occupy closed-list positions that all but guarantee election. "The inclusion by major parties of candidates who are under criminal investigation is a step backward for democracy in Albania," said Rigels Xhemollari, Qendresa Qytetare's executive director. "Some of the names on the lists are family members of known criminal figures or individuals who were previously removed from politics in accordance with the decriminalization law."

Xhemollari warned that if these candidates enter parliament they could use their positions to undermine the justice system. Meanwhile, SPAK has announced it is investigating 35 cases of alleged electoral crimes, ranging from vote-buying to abuse of state resources. The sheer number suggests the anti-corruption body, itself a product of the 2016 judicial reform pushed by the EU, is active, but also that the problems it was created to tackle remain widespread.

International observation and polarisation

The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights deployed an election observation mission and issued a preliminary report on 28 April. It described the political environment as characterised by "a high degree of polarization and mistrust between the two main parties," raising concerns about the fairness of the process. The mission noted that while judicial reform has progressed, SPAK's investigations into high-level corruption are real, elections remain a weak point in Albania's democratic architecture.

That assessment matters because the European Commission's next enlargement report, due in autumn, will weigh Sunday's conduct heavily. The Commission has made clear that credible elections are a benchmark for moving from negotiation chapters to actual membership. Albania opened the first cluster of chapters, fundamentals, covering judiciary and fundamental rights, in October 2024. The next clusters depend on sustained reform, not just legislative adoption but implementation.

Why this matters

How we got here

What happens next