section_path: Parties and coalitions
section_name: Parties and coalitions
paragraph_text: Parties and coalitions
  
  According to the electoral code, each political party is mandated to submit a registration request to the CEC no later than 70 days prior to the scheduled election date. This request must comprehensively contain several critical components, including the identity of the party chair authorised to present candidates, the official name and acronym of the party, a specimen of the official stamp, and the contact information for both the finance officer and communication officer. Registered political parties have the option to form coalitions, which must also be registered with the KQZ at least 60 days before the election. A political party that is part of a coalition is restricted from engaging in another coalition or presenting candidates independently. The coalition is required to designate a leading party, which assumes the responsibility for fulfilling the legal obligations formed in the electoral code, and to document inter-party relations in a formal coalition agreement submitted to the KQZ. It is essential that both political parties and coalitions submit a multi-name list of candidates for the parliament election no later than 50 days prior to the election.
  
  In June 2024, Lulzim Basha, the former leader of the Democratic Party, established a new faction titled, the Democratic Party–Euroatlantic Democrats, following internal conflicts regarding the ownership of the party's official seal. By November 2024, Basha revealed that he was engaged in advanced discussions with Endri Shabani of Nisma Thurje to explore potential electoral cooperation. However, Shabani publicly rejected the possibility of such an alliance, asserting that a cooperation with Basha or his faction was "zero".
  
  On 24 September 2024, representatives of the Democratic Party initiated consultations with allies for the upcoming elections, with Ilir Meta of the Freedom Party being the first to meet. Meta did not take a clear stance on whether to run on a joint electoral list or separately, but expressed a preference for using his own party's logo. On 14 November 2024, the party's leader Sali Berisha, who was placed under house arrest since December 2023, addressed concerns about Meta's involvement in the electoral list for the elections, despite Meta's imprisonment in October 2024. Berisha underscored that Meta, who is according to him incarcerated without a clear charge, would be included in the electoral list if his party joined the coalition.
  
  By the time of the election, the CEC had registered 53 political parties and 11 coalitions. In order to be in the ballot, parties either needed to have a certain number of MPs in the current parliament or have 5,000 signatures, while coalitions either needed to have a certain number of MPs in the current parliament or have 7,000 signatures.
  
  The table below lists the parties which have registered in CEC for the next election and have qualified for ballot access.