TIRANA, Albania - Albanians were casting ballots on Sunday to elect mayors and city councils, or parliaments, amid a tense political conflict with the opposition boycotting the municipal elections. While the Socialist-run government is insisting on holding the election, the opposition wants to stop it taking place. The opposition, led by the centre-right Democratic Party, blames a corrupt government linked to organized crime and is demanding fresh national elections. Votes will be cast to pick authorities that will run 61 districts across the country for the next four years. Thousands of police officers guarded the polling stations Sunday.

Source: thestar June 30, 2019 07:32 UTC