The vote counting began shortly after midnight at the electoral commission center in Himara‘s football stadium to determine the successor of Fredi Beleris, the elected mayor and current MEP who remains in prison.

Present in the hall were the two candidates, Petros Gjikurias and Vangelis Tavos, as well as the MP and president of KEAD, Vangelis Doules, and the MP and general secretary of the Socialist Party, Blendi Klosi.

According to himara.gr, by 6:30 AM, 25 out of 36 ballot boxes had been opened, and former Socialist Party MP Tavos was leading Gjikurias with 3,497 votes to 2,206.

It is noted that the Albanian government had been striving to prevent another unpleasant surprise by the election of Petros Gikourias, who is supported by Omonia and opposition parties and is the successor of Beleri’s combination that won the May 2023 elections, and to secure the victory of the “imported” candidate, as he hails from Dropoli, former Socialist Party MP Vangelis Tavos.

The candidate supported by the Greek Minority, Petros Gjikurias, in a statement after the election process expressed confidence that he would be the winner of the election, and called on his opponent, Vangelis Tavos, to cooperate for the Municipality of Himara. “I will be the winner, if you want to come work for me, you are welcome. I am sure that the people of Himara believed in me,” Gjikurias said, among other things.

At the same time, he accused members of the Albanian government of attempting to intimidate minority members, but said their threats fell on deaf ears.

“The people of Himara showed that they are not afraid, and their participation was greater, which shows that they did not lower their heads,” he said.