From the impossible to the harder - A consolidated ND to lead in a fragmented Hellenic Parliament
FEPS Europe
The Foundation for European Progressive Studies (FEPS) is the think tank of the progressive political family at EU level
On Sunday 25 June – just after five weeks – Greek citizens went to the polls again to elect the 300 members of the Hellenic Parliament. This time,?the electoral rules were also different, providing the winning force with a bonus that in the end allowed the New Democracy (ND) of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to win 158 seats. He welcomed the news enthusiastically, interpreting it as a strong mandate for his political and business programme.
ND saw what many called 'unanticipated gains',?whilst?the previous leader on the Greek party scene – SYRIZA – noted a further decline, dropping from 20.1 per cent in May to 17.8 per cent now. PASOK-KINAL gained an additional 0.4 per cent, which its leader Nikos Androulakis put in the context of the previous defeats, underlining that it's a 50 per cent increase in comparison to the party's worst-ever result.
As it is often said, a month is a very long time in politics. And so, the new parliament will see a greater degree of fragmentation. Worryingly, it will feature 12 MPs from the Spartans Party that raised on the foundations of the previous Golden Dawn party and managed to do so successfully in just three weeks. Among the other actors that are represented in the new parliament are the communist KKE, the ultra-nationalist Greek Solution, the national-conservative NIKI and populist, leftist and anti-establishment Course of Freedom.
Three things stand out in Greece's two consecutive parliamentary elections held with little tension and high abstention: a personal triumph for Kyriakos Mitsotakis, leader of the centre-right party New Democracy, the implosion of the radical left party of SYRIZA, and the rise of the far right – albeit a fragmented one.?Read more
This article was written by? Loukas Tsoukalis , Professor at Sciences Po in Paris and emeritus professor at the University of Athens. He is also president of the board of ELIAMEP (Hellenic Foundation for European & Foreign Policy)
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The Greek election result of 25 June confirmed the trend first made visible in the earlier contest last May. Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his centre-right New Democracy Party has obtained a clear mandate and comfortable parliamentary majority to implement his policy programme.?Read more
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