2023-06-25 18:49:13
New Democracy (ND), in power from 2019 to the end of May, would win between 40% and 44% of the vote ahead of the left-wing Syriza party of Alexis Tsipras which would obtain between 16.1% and 19.1% of the vote. , according to polls published at the close of the polls by television channels.
A big defeat for the left of Syriza
Five to nine parties would have crossed the 3% threshold to enter the unicameral Greek Parliament which has 300 seats, according to these polls. Kyriakos Mitsotakis, head of government from 2019 to the end of May, had won a big victory five weeks ago by winning 40.79% of the vote. Syriza’s double. But this advance had not brought him the absolute majority required to form a government without having to forge an alliance.
The leader of New Democracy (ND) had ruled out building a coalition and called for new elections, counting for that on a voting system which this time grants the party that came out on top a « bonus » up to 50 seats. If these estimates are confirmed, Alexis Tsipras would suffer another heavy defeat after a stinging setback five weeks ago when Syriza fell to 20.07% of the vote, a drop of more than 11.5 points compared to 2019.
A dotted future for Alexis Tsipras
The question of his future at the head of the party should now openly arise when already after the defeat of May 21, the former prime minister (2015-2019) and troublemaker of the radical left in Europe had admitted having thought of resigning. Outside his polling station in Athens on Sunday, Kyriakos Mitsotakis claimed that Greeks were voting “to obtain a stable and effective government” for the next four years.
In recent days, he has called on the Greeks to grant him a large majority. By largely turning away from Syriza, the Greeks have indeed shown that they definitely want to turn the page on the years of bitter financial crisis and bailouts under drastic conditions which have considerably impoverished them.
Salary increases and hiring
Kyriakos Mitsotakis has also continued to brandish his economic record, marked by a rebound in growth, to 5.9% in 2022, and falling unemployment after the last decade of the crisis. During the campaign, this 55-year-old Harvard graduate promised wage increases, especially for the lowest incomes, the main concern of Greeks who suffer from the high cost of living.
He also undertook to carry out massive hiring in the public health sector, which has suffered from a glaring lack of resources since the financial crisis and the drastic slimming treatments imposed in many public services.
For his part, Alexis Tsipras warned against a “uncontrolled government” in the event of a large victory for the right and claimed “a balance in our democracy and our political system” with “a strong opposition” able to play its role.
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