DP escalates election rejection, files second appeal over Berat results
The Democratic Party of Albania (DP) has filed a formal appeal with the Central Election Commission seeking the annulment of the May 11 parliamentary election results in the Berat district and calling for a repeat vote. The party is also challenging the Commissioner’s decision to certify the summary tables for the district.
Why is this important: This is the second official appeal from DP, following a similar challenge filed for the Kukës district on May 23. DP leader Sali Berisha has announced that the opposition coalition will file identical appeals for all 12 districts in the country. At a press conference, Berisha even raised the possibility of launching a hunger strike in September if the party’s demands are not addressed.
Context: The appeal signals an intensification of the DP’s post-election strategy and raises the prospect of a prolonged political standoff—despite the fact that the final results have already been certified. This is not a new pattern. While in power in the early 1990s and again from 2005 to 2013, Berisha and the DP-led government developed a reputation for organizing elections that failed to meet democratic standards. In opposition, the party gained a reputation for refusing to accept the results of any elections it did not win – it has rejected the results of the 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021, 2023 and now 2025 elections.
So predictable has this behavior become that many political observers openly predicted it during the campaign alongside multiple polls and surveys that consistently pointed to a Socialist landslide. However, despite Berisha’s repeated claims of massive manipulation and the current filings, the DP has yet to present any public evidence to support its demands.
Many analysts suggest the real issue may be Berisha’s own political survival. Under the party’s statute, the leader must resign in the event of an election loss. Yet Berisha, who is also facing a looming corruption trial alongside his son-in-law, appears determined to remain at the helm. His continued refusal to concede keeps the party in a holding pattern—paralyzing its ability to reflect, reform, or rebuild.
What the DP wants: In its appeal for Berat, the Democratic Party is asking for the invalidation of the May 11 vote in the district, the nullification of the certified result and a repeat election in the entire Berat electoral zone.
Additional appeals for other districts are expected in the coming days, with the opposition showing no signs of backing away from its all-or-nothing rejection of the vote.
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