Adriatik Alimadhi

Adriatik Alimadhi has been active in Albanian politics for many years, primarily through his leadership of the Partia Balli Kombëtar (National Front Party, PBK), a nationalist political party in Albania. He was elected as president of the party in 2008, succeeding previous leadership and serving as the party’s principal representative in national political affairs.^[2]

In 2009, Alimadhi was appointed Vice Minister of Public Works and Transport in the second government of Prime Minister Sali Berisha, a position he held until September 2013. Alimadhi also ran for a seat in the Albanian Parliament in the 2017 parliamentary election, standing as a candidate in the Vlora county with the support of the Democratic Party. Although he was not immediately elected, he later entered the Assembly in 2019 following the resignation of Democratic Party deputy Agron Shehaj. Upon entering parliament, Alimadhi helped form a parliamentary group of right-wing parties, serving as its leader.^[3]

In April 2025, Adriatik Alimadhi was involved in a widely reported incident with the State Police of Albania that became a significant moment during the 2025 election campaign. According to multiple news outlets, police officers went to a café in Tirana where Alimadhi was present, reportedly at his brother’s establishment making plans for campaign activities, to conduct a control related to alleged illegal gambling activity in the venue. Local media reported that Alimadhi verbally and physically resisted police orders and attempted to leave the premises despite officers’ instructions to remain for verification, leading to a forced escort by police into a police van. The police said this was due to his refusal to comply with their orders during the inspection. As a result, Alimadhi was procedurally referred to prosecution for “obstruction of a public order employee.” ^[4]

In his own public statements following the event, Alimadhi denied the police’s version of events, asserting that he had been peacefully sitting with friends and planning election campaign strategies when he was wrongfully and forcefully detained. He also claimed that police officers behaved inappropriately toward him and insulted him during the incident. The incident drew political reactions. Sali Berisha described Alimadhi’s detention as politically motivated repression, suggesting it amounted to “political imprisonment” because it took place in an election context and involved a leader of a smaller party questioning police actions.^[5]