The Socialist Party of Albania emerged in the aftermath of the
fall of communism in Albania that had dominated
Albanian politics since the end of
World War II. The dissolution of the
People's Socialist Republic prompted a reevaluation of political ideologies and a quest for democratic governance, paving the way for the rise of multiple political entities. The roots of the Socialist Party can be traced back to the
Party of Labour of Albania under its founder
Enver Hoxha, which had been the ruling party for over four decades. Hoxha's successor
Ramiz Alia was forced to introduce limited reforms in the late 1980s. On 11 December 1990, Alia announced that the PPSh had given up its monopoly of power. The PPSh won the
1991 Albanian Constitutional Assembly election, the first free elections held in the country in almost 80 years. By this time, it was no longer a
Marxist–Leninist party. At an extraordinary congress on 10–13 June 1991, the PPSh reorganized as the PS in an effort to adapt to survive in the new system.
Fatos Nano, a man from the
intelligentsia, was elected the new chairman. Nano helped to reform the old Communist party and made it a member of the
Socialist International. A faction of the party, led by
Ilir Meta, split away from the PS in 2004 and formed the
Socialist Movement for Integration (
Lëvizja Socialiste për Integrim, LSI). On 10 October 2005, Nano resigned as the chairman of the PS after losing the
2005 Albanian parliamentary election, and was succeeded by
Edi Rama. Under Rama's lead, the PS formed the
Alliance for a European Albania, which united several political parties. The alliance won the
2013 Albanian parliamentary election, thus returning the Socialists to the government after 8 years. The Socialist Party, now running alone, again won the
2017 election and the
2021 election, winning 74 seats in both of them and is thus currently able to rule Albania alone, although it is externally supported by the Social Democratic Party in parliament. == Political positions ==