Hope is growing scarce in Albania. Emigration continues relentlessly. But the wish for their country to finally arrive in Europe was something the Albanian people were not willing to give up in the parliamentary elections on May 11.
Nine days after the parliamentary elections on May 11, 2025, the vote count in Albania – including that of the diaspora – was officially completed. The result was clear: the Socialist Party (Partia Socialiste, PS) led by Edi Rama was the decisive winner. Not only was it able to maintain its position, but it also expanded it significantly, increasing its vote share from 48.5 percent to over 52 percent and its seats in the 140-member parliament from 74 to 83. This secures a fourth term for Prime Minister Edi Rama, who has governed the country since 2013.
The weakness of the opposition and the instrumentalization of power
Rama’s success was largely based on the weakness and fragmentation of the opposition. The largest opposition party (Democratic Party, DP), which fell into a deep internal crisis and split into hostile factions after the 2021 parliamentary elections, ran this time under former Prime Minister and President Sali Berisha and suffered a severe defeat. It secured only 34 percent of the vote - down from nearly 40 percent - and dropped from 59 to 50 seats. This revealed the limits of Berisha’s boycott strategy and his increasingly nationalist and right-populist rhetoric. Hoping for victory, he adopted a “Great Albania” agenda under the advice of Donald Trump’s campaign manager.
Newly formed small parties also fell far short of expectations. Though they presented fresh faces, local issues, and aimed to be an alternative to the established political elite, they couldn’t break away from the traditional pattern of Albanian politics: using civic engagement as a means of personal political profiling. They lacked broad programmatic foundations and stable internal structures. They failed to convince voters that they stood for more than just highly educated and committed individuals using civil society as a springboard into formal politics - often resulting in assimilation into existing power structures and ultimately reinforcing the status quo.
As international election observers led by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) criticized, the “misuse of public resources and institutional power by the ruling party” also played a role in Edi Rama’s electoral advantage.
Europe as a campaign promise
The key factor behind Rama’s remarkable success, however, was his political instinct for the strongest desire of Albanians at home and in the diaspora: joining the EU. Over 90% of the population supports EU accession—the highest rate in any Western Balkan country. Against this backdrop, Edi Rama focused his campaign entirely on a pro-European alignment for Albania. In a political landscape often marked by skepticism and partisanship, he managed to rally a broad civil majority—beyond traditional party lines. He framed the election as a defining moment, promising nothing less than EU membership for Albania by 2030 - within five years.
The clear election result shows how much the European project has become a national priority for many Albanians. The vote was less a choice for a party than for a goal: staying on the European path. Rama’s success thus primarily reflects a collective political will to firmly anchor Albania in Europe’s future.
Albania is establishing itself as a front runner for EU integration in the Western Balkans and is gaining more international recognition as a reliable NATO member.
Rama’s strategy of portraying himself as a visionary leader of Albania’s Euro-Atlantic integration fits well with foreign policy developments. His support for the EU’s foreign policy course has been widely celebrated, especially since the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The long-awaited EU accession talks with Albania officially began in mid-2022. In this context, Albania is establishing itself as a front runner for EU integration in the Western Balkans and is gaining more international recognition as a reliable NATO member.
Tirana, once a sleepy capital, has become the stage for major international forums - from EU-Western Balkans summits to meetings under the Berlin Process and gatherings of the European Political Community. At this year’s International Tourism Fair in Berlin, Albania was the official guest country and impressed visitors with its diversity. The fact that both sides are actively working on Albania’s image transformation is very welcome and undoubtedly a necessary step for European integration. But despite the current positive appearance of Albania’s EU integration, the question remains whether it is all somewhat hypocritical.
Europeanization of Albania: A hypocritical development?
Albania’s most significant political and economic challenges arise from a weak state-weak society structure. Socially, the country suffers from a severe shortage of human capital due to emigration and an aging population - trends that have worsened significantly under Rama’s leadership since 2013. His authoritarian policies restrict democratic social and political freedoms, while economically focusing mainly on a real estate boom. This has led to a decline in productive sectors like industry and agriculture. On the state side, there is a lack of adequate capacity at all levels of public administration, and major shortcomings in public infrastructure, especially in healthcare, education, transport, housing, family services, social affairs, and culture - issues exacerbated by the shortage of human capital. All these factors contribute to a weak state-weak society structure that undermines effective governance and social cohesion.
In this context, EU rapprochement in Albania tends to manifest in a boom of controversial infrastructure and tourism projects (e.g., the airport project within the Vjosa-Narta nature reserve) and bilateral deals (e.g., agreements on Italian extraterritorial migrant reception centers on Albanian soil) that are made without involving the local population. These projects not only infringe on people’s fundamental rights and natural habitats, but also threaten nature reserves and Albania’s rich biodiversity, one of its greatest assets.
Hybrid democracy as a risk
One thing should be clear to the EU: Albania’s integration process into the EU must be decisively supported. However, this must not come at the cost of tolerating a hybrid, semi-democratic regime that combines formal democratic institutions with authoritarian practices. Such a regime poses a significant risk - for Albania itself, for regional stability, and for the EU.