The chairman of the Democratic Party of Albania, Sali Berisha, in a statement to the media emphasized that the PD remains a political force open to internal competition and the principle of “one member, one vote,” which he described as fundamental to the party’s functioning.
He reiterated that the PD remains committed to the principle of free and fair competition, stressing that for the party, members’ votes and internal contests are the most dignified way to represent the will of its base.
“The Democratic Party has been and remains absolutely a party open to the highest level of competition. Parties that elect their leaders with one member, one vote are not the majority, but they are a growing minority. But naturally, there is no more dignified way to respect membership than to invite them to vote for the branch chair, the party leader, and so on. We are and will remain firmly the party of free competition, the party of fair competition, but above all, the party of its members.
To remain a party of its members means to give them the right to express themselves and to elect those who defend their interests, not to have others impose choices on them. This cannot happen, it does not happen. The other party, as you can see, from 2009 until today has never voted. In its statute it has the same principle as us—one member, one vote—but Edi Rama has an absolute allergy to voting. That is why he does not hold votes; he has excluded voting from the party. Our party never excludes voting.
Never in my life have I tried, nor will I ever try, to create candidacies. Do not expect that from Sali Berisha. Until today, I have not told anyone to run—not Lulzim Basha, not Sokol Olldashi, not Uran Butka, nor Ibsen Elezi. I категорically reject the practice where a candidate tries to choose their rival.
In the selection of candidates there are criteria, but we do not have strict criteria. We have those that are defined, and you will assess them. So, the Democratic Party has been, is, and will be a party of competition, a party of its members, of their vote. But it will never be a party of fake candidacies. We do not create candidacies,” he said.
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