The return of Lulzim Basha and his candidacy to regain the de facto leadership of the Democratic Party has been met with mixed reactions among Democrat deputies.<\/p>\n
For Bledion Nallbati and Saimir Korreshi, who have recently aligned themselves with Gazment Bardhi, Basha\u2019s return is seen as a violation of the procedures and rules established in the statute of the party.<\/p>\n
Korreshi even went as far as warning that another meeting of the National Council of the DP could disrupt the processes carried out by the pro-Basha group so far, starting from the decision-making of the leadership to that of the National Council just 3 days ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe, as a group of deputies are verifying and looking as to how we can convene another National Council. Let it be decided there whether we will completely fade, or we will lock ourselves in until white smoke comes out, just like when a Pope is chosen. We must find a way to unify the DP.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Nallbati emphasizes that the DP needs its members and not just a leader.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone should call upon themselves that the DP cannot be stronger or become an alternative in this way. A part of us says this party needs members and voters, others say the party needs a leader. I am against the way this process is being carried out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Former appointed party leader Enkelejd Alibeaj sees the situation quite differently, as he voted in favor of the elections on July 29 and all the processes organized by the leadership.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is not just a race between candidates. Both of them have assessed that they should run for leader. The challenge is how transparent will the process be, how much equal space will be given to both those Democrats.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the race for the leadership of the DP, only Lulzim Basha and Gjergj Hani have submitted their candidacies as of now.<\/p>\n
Elections to choose the new party leader are to be held on July 29, as voted by the Presidency in the June 6 meeting, accompanied with high tensions, swearing and insults towards Democrat deputies from Basha\u2019s supporters who stood outside of the premises where the meeting was held.<\/p>\n
Tensions then almost precipitated to physical violence towards deputies, while insults were thrown at journalists who were reporting on the meeting.<\/p>\n
Chairman of the DP Parliamentary Group Gazment Bardhi denounced the violent acts that occurred and even Basha took to his social media then, to condemn the violence, on the other side hailing the reflection that has begun within the opposition to reorganize.<\/p>\n
How did the division in the DP start?<\/strong><\/p>\n It all started with Sali Berisha\u2019s designation as \u201cpersona non grata\u201d by the United States.<\/p>\n Despite losing the April 25 parliamentary elections in 2021, the DP seemed more inclined towards an analysis process and finding reasons for this defeat rather than a deep division for the next two years.<\/p>\n The decision to designate Berisha and his family was made public in May 19, 2021.<\/p>\n Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused the former Prime Minister of being undesirable to the United States and involved in corrupt acts that undermine democracy for personal gain.<\/p>\n In his response, former Prime Minister Berisha expressed regret over this decision and stated that the decision is without any concrete basis. He invited the United States to make public all facts and documents it possesses to support the claims against him. Berisha blamed billionaire George Soros for this decision, claiming that Soros has opposed projects prepared by him.<\/p>\n Then leader of the DP Lulzim Basha primarily aligned with Berisha, and declared that the decision was made without any concrete basis. He called for full transparency regarding every fact and document. Basha appreciated Berisha as a leader who had made valuable contributions to the country\u2019s development.<\/p>\n Just a few days after this decision, Berisha decided to challenge the U.S. Secretary of State by filing a defamation lawsuit in the criminal court of Paris.<\/p>\n On June 13, 2021, despite losing the general elections, the DP held elections, and Lulzim Basha won with 81 percent of the votes against three other candidates.<\/p>\n On July 17, 2021, the Democratic Party decided to hold the National Assembly, where delegates were summoned to approve changes to the statute and discuss the analysis of the election defeat, even though the ruling majority was considered the sole culprit for the loss, disregarding internal factors.<\/p>\n On August 5, Sali Berisha filed a defamation lawsuit against U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the Criminal Court of Paris.<\/p>\n On August 30, the National Council convened to elect the party\u2019s top leaders, starting from the vice chairpersons to the members of Parliamentary Commissions.<\/p>\n But on September 9, 2021, a major blow came. Sali Berisha was expelled from the parliamentary group of the DP by Lulzim Basha. According to him, this decision was made to avoid any misunderstanding until the legal request in Paris is concluded, following Berisha\u2019s designation.<\/p>\n This was the moment that caused a deep rift between Berisha and Basha. After this date, the rift between the two highest figures in the DP only deepened.<\/p>\n Right after this decision, Berisha started a nationwide campaign, engaging in conversations with Democrats about his slogan \u201cfor a more united, stronger, and open Democratic Party\u201d.<\/p>\n Berisha primarily used this campaign as a platform to accuse Lulzim Basha. He went as far as saying that Basha was taken hostage by Prime Minister Edi Rama and as a traitor, even mentioning Basha\u2019s files in the United States.<\/p>\n On the other hand, Basha did not remain idle. For him, it was Berisha who was turning the DP into his personal bunker. Basha insisted that the DP does not oppose the decisions of the United States as a strategic ally.<\/p>\n But Berisha continued to criticize Basha\u2019s decision as \u201cnull and void\u201d and driven by personal interests, as according to him, it was not consulted with the party\u2019s statute.<\/p>\n Berisha presented a platform for the revival of the DP and announced that the National Assembly would be held on December 11, 2021. This assembly took place at the \u201cAir Albania\u201d stadium, and its most important decisions were the removal of Lulzim Basha as leader and the appointment of the so-called \u201cReestablishment\u201d as the interim chairman until the election of the latter.<\/p>\n A week later, Lulzim Basha also held a National Assembly at the Palace of Congresses. In this assembly, dismissals were voted upon, and a resolution against Berisha\u2019s assembly was approved.<\/p>\n On the same day, December 18, Berisha had also organized a referendum for the removal of Basha. According to the initiators of this referendum, 43,385 members of the party voted in favor of the removal of Basha from the helm of the DP.<\/p>\n However, elections, exclusions, and assemblies, would soon leave space for violence.<\/p>\n On January 8, 2022, Sali Berisha along with his supporters stormed the DP headquarters. The confrontation between the two Democrat camps escalated into physical clashes.<\/p>\n During the clash that lasted for two consecutive hours between Berisha\u2019s supporters and those of Basha, strong means were used, and there were injured on both sides. Basha\u2019s supporters were trapped on the terrace, while the conflict between the two parties was avoided with the intervention of the police using tear gas, dispersing the crowd.<\/p>\n On January 11, Lulzim Basha, in a late-night meeting with the leadership, decided to exclude former chairman Sali Berisha and 8 of his supporters, as well as suspend 19 other Democrats, mainly deputies and party officials involved in the violence of January 8.<\/p>\n Since Basha was still legally the chairman of the Democratic Party, and the \u201cReestablishment\u201d could not be registered in the Central Election Commission as an electoral subject, on January 31, Sali Berisha confirmed a coalition with Ilir Meta\u2019s then Socialist Movement for Integration in the partial local elections held on March 6, 2022, for six municipalities in the country.<\/p>\n Later, the \u201cReestablishment\u201d appealed to the court for the recognition of the statute and the decisions of the December 11 Council. The case was assigned to judge Agron Zhukri, against whom a request for recusal due to conflict of interest was made. The request, however was not granted.<\/p>\n Thus, March 6 became an important day for both parties in the DP. Although running in a coalition, \u201cReestablishment\u201d managed to win one municipality, Shkodra, while the official DP failed to win any municipalities. Five others were won by the Socialist Party.<\/p>\n This victory gave Berisha confidence, considering it a confirming vote for the Democrats to determine who had the majority in the party.<\/p>\n On March 21, the leader of the Democratic Party, Lulzim Basha, announced his resignation from the leadership of the opposition after consecutive electoral losses and increasing pressure from Berisha. Basha stated that he was taking a step back and withdrawing to work on the revival of the Democratic Party. He left Enkelejd Alibeaj in charge as the appointed chairman.<\/p>\n On March 25, judge Agron Zhukri registered the decisions of the December 11 council and handed over the leadership of the Democratic Party to Berisha. Appointed chairman Enkelejd Alibeaj deemed the judge\u2019s decision scandalous and decided to appeal it to the Court of Appeals.<\/p>\n Agron Zhukri\u2019s decision paved the way for the \u201cReestablishment\u201d to take over the leadership.<\/p>\n On April 30, Berisha convened another national council, but a significant number of deputies did not participate. This council decided to hold elections for the new leader on May 22, 2022, a date until which the party would still be governed by the \u201cReestablishment\u201d.<\/p>\n The National Council also declared a vacancy for the leader of the parliamentary group of the Democratic Party, dismissing the current leader of the group, Enkelejd Alibeaj.<\/p>\n On May 23, Sali Berisha was elected leader of the DP with 93.45% of the Democrat votes, while his opponent Ibsen Elezi received only 5.8% of the votes.<\/p>\n On July 7, Berisha held the first protest after returning as the leader of the DP. It was then announced that September would be a month of protests, but in reality, those protests were postponed to the following months.<\/p>\n On July 22, Sali Berisha was declared persona non grata by the United Kingdom. A letter stated that the decision was made due to \u201ccorruption, clear links with organized crime groups and criminals who pose a threat to security in Albania and Britain\u201d.<\/p>\n On October 18, Berisha initiated a primary race for candidates in the local elections of 2023.<\/p>\n On October 27, Sali Berisha and the now Movement for Freedom led by Ilir Meta signed an agreement to run joint candidates in the local elections of May 14. According to the agreement, Berisha would propose candidates for mayors, while the Movement for Freedom would propose candidates for municipal councils.<\/p>\n In response to Alibeaj\u2019s announcement that he would also field candidates for May 14, Berisha responded that his proposals were on behalf of Edi Rama and sought to eradicate the DP and the opposition.<\/p>\n Berisha and Meta started a wave of protests from November 2022 and on, while the McGonigal scandal also broke out. The opposition started calling for the resignation of PM Rama, but protests eventually faded.<\/p>\n On March 3, 2023 the opposition held a previously announced protest, which also coincided with the review of the DPD\u2019s logo case at the Court of Appeal.<\/p>\n Just a few hours after the end of Berisha\u2019s protest, under tense political and international pressure, the Court of Appeal decided to annul the decisions made by judge Agron Zhukri and referred the case back to the first instance.<\/p>\n Such a decision left the leadership of the DP, at least on paper, to Enkelejd Alibeaj. Immediately after, legal representatives announced that the party would register for the May 14 elections.<\/p>\n Berisha\u2019s faction described the Court of Appeal\u2019s ruling as scandalous, alleging direct interference by PM Rama in the process, as well as the U.S. Embassy\u2019s involvement. They added that the Democrats would defend political pluralism and the DP at all costs. Berisha announced that an appeal would be filed to the Supreme Court, and even to Strasbourg if no solution was found.<\/p>\n Ilir Meta joined this stance and stated that the judiciary was captured by Rama, who, according to him, was afraid of the opposition and the elections.<\/p>\n Both factions of the DP suffered a blow in the May 14 local elections, as Berisha refused to join his group under the official DP logo, accusing Alibeaj of working against the opposition. Berisha instead chose to run together with Meta and their \u201cTogether We Win\u201d coalition.<\/p>\n While Alibeaj entered the local elections as the leader of the DP, the documents sent to the Central Elections Committee prior to registration in the elections, recognized Basha as the leader. According to Alibeaj, this happens because the party registry does not register resignations but only the elections of new leaders.<\/p>\n Despite political statements and the terrible result, which caused Alibeaj to resign, the DP remains divided.<\/p>\n Lulzim Basha has reemerged in the political scene, a year after stepping back, but his return seems to be deepening the rift between Democrats.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The return of Lulzim Basha and his candidacy to regain the de facto leadership of the Democratic Party has been met with mixed reactions among Democrat deputies. For Bledion Nallbati and Saimir Korreshi, who have recently aligned themselves with Gazment Bardhi, Basha\u2019s return is seen as a violation of the procedures and rules established in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":56127,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[153],"tags":[947,545,361,305,3038,420,243,151,570,1753,3039],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n