TIRANA, (Islamweb & Agencies) -Albania's ruling Socialist Party (PS) said late Sunday that it had won 37 out of 44 seats in the second round of parliamentary elections in the Balkan country, considered a crucial test for democracy and stability here.
Prime Minister Ilir Meta's PS had held a comfortable lead over an opposition coalition led by former president Sali Berisha's Democratic Party (PD) after a first-round ballot on June 24. (Read photo caption below).
The PS won 33 seats outright two weeks ago, while the PD gained 17.
No serious incidents were reported shortly before polling ended at 6:00 pm (1600 GMT) -- unlike the previous legislative elections in 1997 when armed gangs went on a rampage, leaving some 20 people dead.However, Berisha, who has been claiming victory for his coalition since the first round, held an emergency meeting late Sunday with Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), European Union and United States representatives in Albania, to present them with a list of alleged irregularities.
Diplomats present at the hour-long gathering refused to discuss its tone.
Berisha had earlier threatened not to accept the outcome of the ballot, accusing the socialists of preparing to commit electoral "fraud" and said PD election observers had been subject to "political pressure".
On Sunday, he said the police had pressured PD observers, an accusation rejected by police chief Bilbil Mema.
In a letter addressed to the OSCE office in Tirana, Mema said about 10 people had been arrested for acting as electoral observers, even though they had no identification papers to prove it.
But "no one was maltreated," he added.
Forty-four voting booths -- out of 2,500 altogether -- opened four hours late, according to Central Election Commission (CEC) chief Ilirian Celibashi, due to "disagreements" among official observers from the political parties.
"These minor irregularities do not however affect the conduct of the voting," said Celibashi, who expected the problems to be resolved in good time.
The commission said about two hours before polls closed, participation stood at 35 percent out of the one million people called upon to vote.
The OSCE, monitoring the vote, issued a statement urging the political parties to accept the election results "for the good of the stability" of the country.
The elections have a double significance. The winners will not only form the new government but will also elect the president next year if they take at least 84 seats in the 140-member parliament in Tirana.
PHOTO CAPTION:
Democratic party and "Unity for Victory" coalition leader Sali Berisha adresses the media during a press conference he held in the party's headquarters while waiting for official results of the Albanian national parliamentary elections, in Tirana, Albania, late Sunday night, June 24, 2001. Former Albanian President Berisha is amongst the about 1,600 candidates from 38 political parties and coalitions, who are running for 140 seats in the nation's parliament. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)