TIRANA, March 31 – With more than one year to go before Albania elects its new president, Prime Minister Edi Rama has made it clear the new president will be selected from his ruling Socialist Party-led coalition.
The Prime Minister ruled out a possible re-election of current President Bujar Nishani, saying that the new president will be elected from his Socialist Party and the Socialist Movement for Integration, the junior partner which has emerged as a kingmaker in the last two general elections.
The Socialist Party-led government has often publicly criticized President Nishani, a former senior politician of the current opposition Democrats of vetoing its legal initiatives and blocking appointments in key diplomatic posts. The President has also complained of the government trying to strip him of some of his powers including those related to the military, where the head of state also serves and commander in chief, according the constitution
“There will be a candidate who will be discussed with the allies, the Socialist Party and the Socialist Movement for Integration and of course it will also be introduced to the Democratic Party as a consensual option to also get their votes. The President will be elected by the Socialist Party and the Socialist Movement for Integration,” Rama told Ora News TV in an interview.
Bujar Nishani’s five-year mandate expires in July 2017 and the new president is expected to be elected by the current Parliament ahead of the June 2017 general elections.
The current Socialist Party-led majority and its allies currently have the required 84 votes required to elect the new president in the first three rounds.
Albania’s president is elected in the 140-seat parliament with three-fifth of the votes in the first three rounds or a simple majority in the next two rounds.
Earlier this year, Parliament Speaker and SMI leader Ilir Meta did not hide his ambition of running for president.
“Everybody aged more than 40 has this idea, including Ilir Meta. I would be insincere if I tell you I have never thought of it, but do not consider it a necessity,” said 47-year old Meta.
Presidential races in Albania become hot topics and often come with last-minute non-consensual choices.
Albania’s president has very limited powers and mostly represents the unity of the people. The president is the chairman of the High Council of Justice and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.
The ruling majorities may override a presidential veto, according to the constitution, and laws can come to power without a presidential signature after the veto is overwritten.
