The December 2nd, 1945 Albanian elections : legitimization, or mere formalization for communist power?

The article aims to give an historical survey over the seizing the political power by the communists in Albania in 1945. The discussion is focused mainly on the question whether the communist government enjoyed the support of the overwhelming part of the population, i.e. was a legitimate government, or they forced the Albanian population into accepting them. The Albanian communists were able to seize the power before the foreign armies left the country. However they lacked the international recognition of their government. The Yalta Conference conditioned the recognition of the new provisory governmental authorities in the liberated counties with the conduct of free and democratic elections. Relying to the Yalta agreement, the western Allies, USA and UK conditioned their recognition for the provisional government with holding of the free elections. The article deals widely with the Albanian communist leaders' efforts to ensure the victory during the elections of 2 December 1945. They used the propaganda to motivate their supporters and the terror to get rid to their political adversaries, hindering them to organize; they promulgated a legal framework that prohibited the opposition to participate in the election. Albanian Democratic Front ensured the victory in the elections of 2 December 1945, which in the final analyze was not as spectacular as they were propagandized.