Und hier das offizielle Statement, das Edi Rama
"Der Welt Bürgermeister 2004" ist.
Grossartig Edi, wir gratulieren.!!!
Edi Rama, Mayor of Tirana
elected World Mayor 2004
By Tann vom Hove, Editor
Edi Rama, Mayor of Tirana, has been elected World Mayor 2004. In an annual international competition organised by City Mayors, Mr Rama was not only strongly supported by his own community in the Albanian capital, but also by thousands of voters in other European countries and North America.
Runner up in the 2004 World Mayor project was the Mayor of Mexico City, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who received almost the same number of votes as Edi Rama, but whose supporters were overwhelmingly Mexico-based. Walter Veltroni, Mayor of Rome, placed third in the competition, and also enjoyed wide international support.
Full coverage of World Mayor 2004 on
www.worldmayor.com
In January 2004 City Mayors launched the internet-based project World Mayor 2004. The aim was to raise the profile of mayors worldwide, as well as to honour those who have served their communities well and who have made contributions to the well-being of cities nationally and internationally. The most outstanding mayor was to be awarded the title World Mayor 2004.
City Mayors operates on a non-commercial basis. All published information is available free of charge and free of advertising. In addition, City Mayors does not seek donations and, if offered, will not accept any other forms of remuneration.
Based on more than 400 nominations received by its readers, City Mayors prepared a short list of some 50 mayors to enter the final round of the World Mayor competition. Each reader had four votes. They could, however, only vote for one mayor from each of four world regions: Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa. All votes were counted manually to eliminate, as far as possible, multiple and organised voting. More on methodology
In addition to click-voting, readers were encouraged to comment on why they felt a particular mayor deserved to win the 2004 World Mayor title. When setting up the rules for the competition, City Mayors emphasised that the strength of argument was as important as the number of votes. By stressing the importance of well-expressed comments, City Mayors ensured that the competition participants thought about the merits of their chosen mayors.
By the end of October 2004, more than 35,000 people had cast their votes and submitted comments on the mayors they thought should win the 2004 World Mayor title. Voters from Europe accounted for approximately 41 per cent of the total number of voters. North American voters made up 35 per cent, while Asia contributed 14 per cent of people participating in the 2004 World Mayor project. Some four per cent of voters originated in Central and South American countries; the remainder came from other parts of the world, including Africa and Australia.
The top two placed mayors, Edi Rama (Tirana) and Andrés Manuel López Obrador (Mexico City), both received more than 5,500 votes. Third-placed Walter Veltroni (Rome) enjoyed the support of almost 3,000 people from within Italy, but also from North America and other European countries.
Mayors who were backed for the 2004 World Mayor title by more than 1,500 voters included Annika Billström (Stockholm), Jens Kramer Mikkelsen (Copenhagen), Sergio Chiamparino (Turin), Dora Bakoyanni (Athens), Keshav Sthapit (Kathmandu), Tadatoshi Akiba (Hiroshima), Martin O’Malley (Baltimore) and Bertrand Delanoe (Paris).
In addition to Edi Rama and Walter Veltroni, mayors with strong international appeal included Dora Bakoyanni (Athens), Bertrand Delanoe (Paris), Tadatoshi Akiba (Hiroshima), Klaus Wowereit (Berlin), Wolfgang Tiefensee (Leipzig), Gavin Newsom (San Francisco), Marta Suplici (Sao Paulo), Hazel McCallion (Mississauga) and Keshav Sthapit (Kathmandu).
Statements in support of mayors being well-argued had the advantage of making their assessment as reliable as possible. Tann vom Hove, Publisher and Editor of City Mayors, said that his organisation was looking for mayors who had the passionate support of their communities and won respect on the international stage. “When making the final decision on which mayor should be awarded the title World Mayor 2004, my colleagues and I evaluated all the statements received in support of the Mayors of Tirana and Mexico City,” Mr vom Hove explained.
Both mayors enjoyed incredible support in their communities, and both have undoubtedly changed their cities for the better and improved the conditions of their citizens since taking office. The final decision on who should be awarded the 2004 title was taken by City Mayors’ editorial board. Two members voted for Andrés Manuel López Obrador, while the other five thought Edi Rama should win the 2004 title. As the 2004 winner, Edi Rama will not be eligible to participate in the 2005 competition; the Mayor of Mexico City, however, is entitled to become a candidate in 2005.
Edi Rama will be presented with the 2004 World Mayor award, which was designed by French artist Manuel Ferrari and made by London-based sculptor Kaspar Swankey. City Mayors Publisher, Tann vom Hove, said: “We asked Manuel Ferrari to produce a design that shows what an inspirational mayor can achieve if he builds on strong foundations.” Before contemplating the design, Manuel Ferrari learnt as much as possible about the front-runners in the World Mayor 2004 project. “I wanted to know why these mayors could arouse such strong feelings,” he said, and added that all the mayors he studied had two characteristics in common – courage and conviction.
The comments received by City Mayors in support of many of the 50 finalists indeed express that they have all inspired their communities.
Commenting on Edi Rama (Tirana, Albania)
Edi Rama is the man who changed a whole city. Now there is a new Tirana, coloured, happy, with a new and improved infrastructure and cultural life. I think Edi Rama is the man that has done the best for his country and for Tirana’s citizens. No matter if he wins or not. Most important is that he is a winner for me, and for most of the people of Tirana. Thank you, Edi, from my heart. You are surely the hero of my city
http://www.citymayors.com/mayor2004/edirama_2004.html