TIRANA, June 7 – Media companies in Albania have started to release the first opinion polls ahead of the country’s elections scheduled for June 25.
According to the numbers published by the two first polls, a high number of Albanian voters remains undecided and the election still up for grabs.
The polls show varying numbers, however, they all put the ruling Socialist Party ahead, but not with enough seats in parliament to rule alone. The main opposition Democratic Party comes in second, while the Socialist Movement for Integration is third.
A coalition between any two of the three parties would be needed for a stable government if the poll number prove accurate.
Among the smaller parties, the opinion poll numbers show newcomers Libra and Sfida — two anti-establishment parties — might get seats in parliament, with Libra, led by Ben Blushi, a former Socialist lawmaker, ranking fourth in the two polls.
Increasingly local analysts are seeing signs of the two largest parties, SP and DP, turning against SMI, which has served as kingmaker and been in ruling coalition for the past eight years. Analysts are foreseeing a potential large coalition between the two largest parties if the opinion poll numbers prove to be correct and the Socialists don’t get enough votes to rule alone with 71 MPs, their current target.
Public opinion polls in Albania are common during election campaigns. Very few have proven accurate, and experts warn they must be taken with a grain of salt because those interviewed don’t always tell the truth.
Political parties often conduct private polling of their own to measure the public mood, however.
