The ruling Socialist Party (SP) has picked up Bajram Begaj, the current Chief of General Staff of the army, as a candidate for the post of Albania’s President.

The news was unveiled by Prime Minister Edi Rama after the end of the meeting of the Socialist parliamentary group held at the headquarters of SP on Friday.

Bajram Begaj has been serving in the army for 31 years and has completed military studies and a number of other specialties while he holds the rank of Major General. He was born in the southern town of Rrogozhina on March 20, 1967. He completed his studies at the Faculty of Medicine in the Department of General Medicine in 1989 and became an active officer in the specialty ‘Medicine’ in 1998. Begaj completed his Doctorate in the Field of Medicine in Albania and holds the title “Associate Professor” in Medicine. Currently, Major General Begaj holds the post of Chief of General Staff of the Albanian Armed Forces, while in his 31 years of career in the Armed Forces he has held a number of duties.

He is married to Armanda Begaj and has two sons.
PM Rama said he would invite the presidential candidate to a dinner on Friday evening.
There would be a voting in plenary session of Parliament on Saturday at 18.00 and this is the fourth session which is expected to elect the new head of state as a simple majority is needed after the three failed sessions when 84 ballots were needed for any candidate supposed to be submitted by opposition which failed to do that.

The current President, Ilir Meta will end his mandate on July 24.