(ANSA-AFP) - TIRANA, APR 26 - Albania's prime minister looked
set for a third term in power on Monday, as preliminary election
results gave his Socialist party a commanding lead. Edi Rama, in
power since 2013, has not yet claimed victory following Sunday's
poll, which was closely watched in European capitals as Albania
pushes to open talks on EU membership. But the election
commission said on Monday morning that the Socialists had
captured roughly 50 percent of the vote, after ballots were
counted from almost one-third of polling stations. An alliance
of opposition parties under the Democrat Party -- whose leader
Lulzim Basha claimed victory on Sunday -- were on 39 percent and
another party opposed to Rama was polling at 7 percent. The
campaign was marked by personal insults between candidates and
further deteriorated in the final week when a gunfight between
rival supporters left one person dead. Despite the febrile
atmosphere, voting day itself passed off peacefully, with US and
EU ambassadors urging all sides to stay calm and wait for the
official result. (ANSA-AFP).
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