Former Cyprus Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides won the presidential election on Sunday, promising a non-partisan government in which women would have a large place. Aged 49, he is the youngest head of state ever elected to lead Cyprus.
Nikos Christodoulides won 51.97% of the vote against 48.03% for his rival, Andreas Mavroyiannis, supported by the communist party Akel, according to the latest figures from the government’s electoral service. The participation rate was 72.4%.
After the announcement of his victory, Nikos Christodoulides said he wanted a “50-50” government, with an equal number of women and men, and which could benefit from “broad social support”. Only two women are currently in the cabinet of outgoing President Nicos Anastasiades.
An election announced as close
In his press statements, he said he wanted to meet the leaders of the Disy (right) and Akel parties, when he was elected without the support of either of these two heavyweights in the Cypriot political landscape.
The election had been presented as tight: Nikos Christodoulides, head of diplomacy between 2018 and 2022, had come out on top in the first round, on February 5, with 32.04% of the vote, slightly ahead of another seasoned diplomat, Andreas Mavroyiannis, 66 (29.59%), former ambassador to France and Ireland. Both presented themselves as independents.
The new president succeeds the conservative Nicos Anastasiades, 76, who is completing two five-year terms and to whom he was reputed to be very close. After the defeat of its candidate in the first round, the party of Nicos Anastasiades, Disy, which excluded Nikos Christodoulides for running against the opinion of the party, refused to give voting instructions, leaving the game open.
An inflation that weighs
Rising energy and food prices remain top of mind for Cypriots. Inflation reached 10.9% in 2022, before slowing in January to 7.1%. The Communists, who backed Nikos Christodoulides, have been heavily criticized for their handling of the 2012-2013 financial crisis, which nearly precipitated eurozone member Cyprus into bankruptcy.
The new head of state will be called upon to relaunch talks on the reunification of the island, on hold since 2017. Cyprus has been divided since Turkey’s invasion in 1974 of its northern third, in response to a coup of state of Cypriot-Greek nationalists who wanted to attach the country to Greece. The Republic of Cyprus exercises its authority only over the southern part of the island, separated by the Green Line [une zone démilitarisée contrôlée par l’ONU] of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), self-proclaimed and recognized only by Ankara.
The fight against corruption also dominated the electoral debate, especially after the “golden passport” scandal. This program of granting passports against investments on the island had to be canceled due to allegations of corruption. Another sensitive subject on this island close to the coasts of the Middle East and Turkey: the influx of migrants, for which the two candidates had promised to act. Authorities claim that 6% of the 915,000 people living in the south of the island are asylum seekers.