Infighting escalates in Democratic Party over vote theft allegations

The Democratic Party (DP) is facing a deepening internal crisis following the May 11 elections, as several of its top candidates openly accuse each other of manipulating vote counts — including allegations of theft within the party’s own ranks.

Why this is important: The conflict signals a potentially major rupture inside the party and adds to the legitimacy crisis surrounding leader Sali Berisha, who already faces calls to resign as well as criticism for bypassing internal primaries and hand-picking loyalists for secure list positions. The infighting now threatens to destabilize PD further, just weeks after its electoral defeat.

Context: The complaints began with Ilir Alimehmeti, a candidate in Tirana and one of DP’s most voted candidates, who formally contested the results, alleging that 27 of his preferential votes were misattributed to another DP candidate in just one single ballot box. He has requested a full recount in the Tirana district, claiming the margin was so narrow that even minor errors could change the outcome.

Alimehmeti’s challenge quickly triggered a chain reaction. Two additional DP candidates in Tirana filed similar appeals, pointing to alleged irregularities backed by video footage of the vote-counting process. One candidate claims that his votes have been credited to another candidate, while the second says more than 1,000 of her votes may have been misreported across six counting zones.

In Durrës, another DP candidate submitted his own complaint, accusing party colleagues of vote manipulation. He cited “serious violations” during ballot counting and listed specific cases where votes were allegedly stolen.

What happened: These accusations have intensified scrutiny of DP’s internal election practices, which have long been criticized for lacking transparency and fairness. The claims also revive the controversy around Berisha’s refusal to respect the party’s primary results — sidelining popular candidates in favor of loyalists placed high on closed lists.

While Berisha and his allies maintain that the May 11 elections were rigged nationally by Prime Minister Edi Rama’s Socialist Party, the wave of internal accusations has exposed DP to criticism that its own democratic processes are far from far and credible.

What’s next: The complaints have been submitted to the Central Election Commission and the Commission of Appeals and Sanctions. Although the final outcomes are pending, the scandal has already damaged DP’s public image and deepened divisions within the opposition.

As the party prepares for the new legislative cycle, it does so fractured, with no clear strategy to rebuild or unify its base.