The LDK in Vushtrri on the eve of an important internal race: Who will challenge power in the fall?

Two names are being circulated in the LDK's internal circles, former leader Xhafer Tahiri and Adnan Lahu, a new figure within party structures.

Xhafer Tahiri's possible return to a dangerous conundrum?

Xhafer Tahiri led Vushtre from 2017 to 2021. His victory in 2017 was achieved through a surprise coalition with Vetevendosje Movement to bring down PDK in this municipality.

However, Tahiri's government was accompanied by numerous charges of mismanagement and clientelelymism, which appeared to have been punished in 2021 when it lost the race to PDK's Ferit Idriz, although preliminary polls favoured it.

Tahiri also proved weak in the domestic race for MP in 2024, receiving only about 2,000 votes, in a process contested by both sides for vote manipulation a clear signal that his position within the party has weakened and that his re- running will not go through without internal tension.

Adnan Lahu é profile of a candidate aimed at internal consolidation

On the other side is Adnan Lahu, a younger and less controversial figure within the LDK.

Lahu has been an active part of the party for more than 15 years and is known for his early engagement in the LDK's Youth.

By the time Tahiri led the municipality, Lahu had the position of the director of Cadastria and Geodese, what it shows of a close and early relationship of co-operation between them but can now be turned into a direct race.

Despite the fact that in the 2021 parliamentary elections, he failed to get enough votes to enter the Assembly, Lahu emerged among LDK's most voted in office and most voted in Vushtrri.

That support makes him a powerful and preferred candidate from the base. Currently, it leads the LDK's group of assisters in the Municipal Assembly a position it has strengthened as a critical voice of current PDK governance, but also as a figure that can make the internal union of LDK.