Note: To understand the possibilities for the Democratic Party to unite at the end of the talks of its two separate parts, it is enough to see who the negotiators are.
Sali Berisha has appointed Edi Paloka, his second most trusted man after Flamur Noka, while Lulzim Basha has appointed Gazment Bardhi, the man who catapulted him almost from nothing to the leadership positions of the party after 2017.
The selection of these names shows that the two parties do not retreat from the conditions they have imposed on each other. Berisha refused the condition to recognize the Assembly of December 11 and all the decision-making that followed it, including the process of electing him as president, while Lulzim Basha does not withdraw from the condition that there is no cooperation with 'non gratats'.
This means that the chances of the Democratic Party coming out united at the end of the talks are almost zero. As for the signature, the logo and the seal for this will be decided by the court on November 3, to whom it will be assigned.
But, in the elections, the entire opposition may be divided. Sali Berisha has announced this Wednesday the opposition action with two points, the primaries to produce candidates for mayor and the protests.
Ilir Meta has spoken a lot about protests, but has only organized a peripheral one for fear of lack of participation if he called it in Tirana. For the primaries, when Sali Berisha announced them as innovations within the Democratic Party, Ilir Meta appeared at the press conference and asked him not to rush.
Meta requested the consultation of all opposition actors for the appointment of candidates and according to him the primaries do not help, as they are a one-sided process of the DP.
Surely Meta is privately familiar with Berisha's position not to withdraw from the primaries, as both have admitted that they are in constant communication with each other. This must have been the reason why the leader of the Freedom Party announced the new strategy; that of the battle for municipal councilors.
Meta and the leaders of his party have stated that the aim of the PL will be the municipal councils, which means that they will return to the citizens and the accountability of the local government. The target doesn't seem insane. Broader representation in municipal councils would give Meta's party a broader base to campaign for in the 2025 general elections.
But, in achieving this objective, Meta needs to fight with both Rama and Berisha. That is why the Berisha-Meta alliance is fixed, as Nikollë Lesi described it in a TV interview of the last few days: "They are together, but with iron panties".
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