He denies the charges and calls his detention unjust.
The mayor of Albania's capital, Tirana, Erion Veliaj, who is behind bars on corruption charges, is not expected to be stripped of his powers until the next local elections in 2027. This was reported by BIRN.
Veliaj has been in prison since February 2025, when he was arrested, and therefore cannot perform his duties. He is accused of corruption, money laundering, and concealing assets. He denies the charges and calls his detention unjust.
In this context, in September, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama initiated the dismissal of the mayor of Tirana, which the city council carried out. However, on November 3, the Constitutional Court of Albania declared this decision of the city council invalid, as Veliaj was not present in person during its adoption.
This caused confusion, which Rama commented on during a broadcast on one of the Albanian television channels. "Veliaj will remain mayor until 2027," he said, thereby making his dismissal impossible.
Although the situation is unprecedented in Albanian politics, the mayor of Tirana has already made at least some decisions while behind bars. For example, on November 11, Veliaj signed an order to decorate the city for the New Year holidays.
Tirana is the capital and largest city of Albania (about 400,000 people), the main political, economic, and cultural center of the country. It forms an independent administrative unit, the city of Tirana, and is also the administrative center of the corresponding region and district it belongs to. It was founded in 1614 and has been the capital of the country since 1920.
