Fredi Beleri named ruling ND candidate in European elections

Ruling New Democracy announced Fredi Beleri, an ethnic Greek mayor-elect in Albania recently sentenced to two years in prison for vote-buying, as a candidate for the upcoming European Parliament elections.

He was represented by his brother, Leonardo, at the ballot announcement in downtown Athens, as Beleri is currently in Albanian police custody.

"The battle I am fighting is not personal. It is a battle for the rule of law and democracy," Beleri said in an audio message posted on Facebook.

"It is a battle for the values espoused by the West and Europe and which must be respected by those who want to join the great European family," he added.

Other candidates include New Democracy's current MEPs, Greek journalists Giorgos Aftias and Eleonora Meleti, and former Olympic weightlifting champion Pyrros Dimas.