Telemachos Kambouris: “I will honor society’s preference by serving all Rhodians and all Rhodian women”

2023-10-15 07:08:13

The first of the first in preference crosses on the island of Rhodes, Mr. Telemachos Kambouris, speaks today in “demokratiki” about the municipal elections, about the second round in the Municipality of Rhodes and about his electoral success, as well as about the role of the media social media in this election.

• Second round on Sunday, October 15 for the Municipality of Rhodes. For what reasons did you come this far? I would like your feedback.
First of all we are the winners of the first round by a huge margin from the second. For a few dozen ballots our combination did not exceed 43% of the valid ones. For just a few dozen (!) of the 55,722 valid ballots. More than 43% of our ballot was in the ballot box. The cancellation of hundreds of ballots of Antonis Kambourakis was the only reason we did not finish the elections on the 1st Sunday.
The will of all voters is respected as is the legislation for validity. But hundreds of our voters voted for us but unfortunately their vote was canceled for reasons that I personally believe had to do with the complex and difficult voting process and a ballot that no matter what you did you couldn’t tame it.
It was very easy to tear either during the crucifixion, since it did not fit in the thin wooden bearing, or when folding it and placing it in the small envelope. Another important reason is ballot box tampering.
I think you will agree with me, that it is one thing for the voter to voluntarily cancel a ballot, and another for the involuntary one due solely to the circumstances of the procedure.
In the second case, the voter leaves the polling station considering that he has expressed his will in favor of a combination and this will be counted.
If you had told him at that time, “you know, you’re just voting because your ballot got torn when you were trying to put it in the envelope,” he would have reacted.
I want to dwell a little on this and make it understandable. More than 43% of the citizens who came to the polls chose the combination of Antonis Kambourakis.
The numbers show this. But with the cancellations, for reasons that have nothing to do with the will of the voters, our combination did not cross the threshold of legislation for a very short time.
You know when we didn’t have a large number of invalids in general?
In 2019 when the ballots were separate (central board and local) and therefore smaller.
While the same with the cancellations also happened in 2014 and 2010 which were high as the ballots were uniform and large in size. This is an important indication that the means by which the voter is asked to vote affects the validity of his vote.
Of course this also happened with the ballots of the other combinations, but the others were not judged for first place and did not have proportionally as many invalids because they did not have the most voters. It was not a breath from the threshold set by the legislation for the election.
So things are simple. The will of more than 43% of the citizens of Rhodes in the ballot box was in favor of Antonis Kambourakis as early as Sunday. However, it was not fully counted. For a few dozen of the invalid ballots, Kambourakis would already be mayor for the next five years.
What should we do, that’s the law, that’s the rules and now we’re going to the second match, where of course we’ll be clearly first.
Now things are very simple and the process much easier for voters.
Small ballots and only 3 together with the white one, and of course with the most clear but crucial dilemma for the voter: Do I vote for experience, planning, strong team of Antonis Kambourakis or do I vote for the unknown, the sketchy and the uncertain?
This Sunday, the invalidities, whatever they may arise, will not be related to diplomas and tears, nor to confusion at the polls. So our voters know that their vote will be counted as they cast it.

• How do you see the role of social media in this election?
Speed, immediacy, breadth and interaction are the main characteristics that social media offer to communication. Whether it is political, social, news or propaganda. Unfortunately, the faster a politically correct message spreads, the more fabricated “reality” can and does spread. No filters, no cutter. The filter must be the recipient of the message itself. And here it raises a great debate that is not currently.
There are political campaigns on social media that respect our intelligence and our aesthetics and there are those that perceive us as… amoebas. But you must know that the world has criteria.
He may be disoriented for a while, but eventually he realizes who is the host and who is the bubble. Make your connections…

• Why should one vote for Antonis Kambourakis and not for Alexandros Koliadis?
Every voter who will go to the polls on Sunday needs to stop for a while, give his thinking the time needed to weigh soberly and maturely, which proposal he considers productive and effective for the country in the next 5 years.
The electoral process is the crown of our democracy, it is a celebration of the equality of citizens but at the same time it is a responsibility.
It’s definitely not a yurushi like what we see some people getting ready to do.
Alas if the institutional body Municipality, the first close to society, which regulates from our daily life to our environment, is taken over by minds driven by their emotions and their adrenaline.
So far we have only seen this from the other side. No feasible and structured management suggestions, no plan for the next day. Only…tomorrow!
See the potential of Antonis Kambourakis who will serve the Municipality, according to the preferences of the citizens. They are people with deep knowledge of self-government, with deep knowledge of the place and its people.
They are people with a political discourse and an institutional background. Next to them there are also some newly elected who will also mature, like all of us in our beginning.
Now imagine the administration of the Municipality, in these conditions of uncertainty and surprise at all levels inside and outside the borders, waiting for the administrators to learn what is one, what is the other and how they should operate. No luxury for tutoring!
The world around us is changing menacingly. We live in the age of volatility and surprise. At such a time, the mature political capital of self-government is more necessary than ever.
• You are first in votes throughout the island and in fact by a large margin from the second among all factions. Did you expect that? Have you decoded it?
I’d be lying if I said I expected it. The competition was great and with many more candidates than the previous elections. But what I desired is certain. And with this goal in mind, I ran my pre-election campaign.
I congratulate all my fellow candidates across the state and I am delighted that they are on our strong team. Either they are elected or not.
As for deciphering the primacy in the crusade, I have to say that success is multifactorial.
It is not due to a single condition. Since we are all judged by the result, we must see what we did along the way well to lead us to a very good result.
A personal first in the preference of our fellow citizens is great, but at the same time very heavy for the future. It entails increased responsibility. I never shirked my responsibility. I accept it and I will carry it out. I will honor society’s preference by serving all Rhodians and all Rhodian women.