FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Gender quota penalizes Xemal Qefaliaj, competition among socialist women
With the completion of the counting of votes from the diaspora, which did not bring any change in the final distribution of mandates, political attention has shifted entirely to the open list – the only one that can still move the balances within the parties. The electoral earthquake this time does not come from the parties, but from individuals.
In the DP camp, the race for the 13th mandate in Tirana has turned into a strong and emotional duel between Ilir Alimehmeti and Jorida Tabaku. The MP has taken the lead with a margin of 300 votes, while the final result is awaited with anxiety. Alimehmeti, excluded from the safe list by Berisha, has received broad citizen support, while Tabaku represents one of the oldest and most respected figures within the official DP.
On the other hand, the Socialist Party is facing an equally fierce, but less public, internal battle. In Tirana, the SP has so far entered 7 candidates from the open list. But the seventh place, which goes to a woman due to the gender quota, has excluded from the Assembly Xhemal Qefali – ranked highest among the men who did not receive a mandate. This has led to a “silent war” between five well-known names of the SP: Olta Xhaçka, Blerina Gjylameti, Etilda Gjonaj, Antonela Dedej and Kejsi Elezi.
Currently, Olta Xhaçka leads with 2,513 votes, but the difference with the followers is minimal. Kejsi Elezi has 2,497 votes; Blerina Gjylameti 2,461; Antonela Dedej 2,151 and Etilda Gjonaj 2,132. Any new box that opens could overturn the ranking, seriously jeopardizing the current mandate of Xhaçka - former minister and key figure in the Rama government.
This tension within the parties shows the power of the open-list system, where the popular vote can completely reconfigure the composition of the Assembly. Instead of appointments from above, this time it is the citizen who chooses who enters Parliament – and this, for many, is the only guarantee of a more representative politics.
Current order, half of the boxes still unnumbered
1. Olta Xhaçka, 2513 votes
2, Kejsi Elezi, 2497 votes
3. Blerina Gjylameti, 2461 votes
4. Antonela Dedej, 2151 votes
5. Etilda Gjonaj, 2132 votes
Lini një Përgjigje