The electoral campaign for the local elections on November 9 officially began on Saturday. 13 mayoral candidates in five municipalities across the country have six days, until the election silence next Saturday, to seek the votes of over 308,000 citizens who will be called to vote.
The elections will include two regional center municipalities, Vlora and Berat, and three smaller municipalities: Tepelena, Cerriku and Mati. The Democratic Party and the opposition do not have officially registered candidates under their banner, but have expressed support for several independent names that will challenge the socialist candidates and some others.
In Vlora, Brunilda Mersini of the SP, who left her mandate as an MP to run for mayor, will face two Democratic candidates, including Dionis Sota, supported by the DP, and Gjergj Nika, a member of the Municipal Council under the Democratic Paris banner. In Berat, the SP candidate, Ervin Ceca, will compete against Pavlo Shkarpa.
In Mat there will be a three-way race: Altin Bojni for the SP, Suzana Pasha, the former chairwoman of the local SP Women's Party, who ran as an independent challenging Rama's proposal, and Eduart Brahilika, supported by the DP and the opposition. In Cërrik, Florenc Doka of the SP will face independent candidate Amarildo Hoxha, supported by Berisha's DP, as well as Eligert Hima from the 'Albania Becomes' Movement party.
In Tepelena, the Socialist Party proposes Gramoz Sako, while the opposition supports the independent Gabriel Guma. The mandate of the new mayors will be one and a half years, until the local elections in the spring of 2027.
