Former Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Thursday announced his resignation as leader of Syriza after the party suffered a heavy defeat in Sunday’s general elections, in which Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ New Democracy won an absolute majority. Tsipras, who wanted to lead a progressive coalition, has proposed a renewal of leadership of the formation that brought him to power in 2015. In doing so, he hopes for a “new Syriza” that responds to the challenges and that he is proud of, achieved in a phase that he himself described as “very difficult” and marked by the financial bailout.
At the end of a meeting of the formation’s executive committee in Athens, the previous opposition leader confirmed that he would not be a candidate in future internal proceedings, the ERT chain reports. Thus ends an “exciting journey” in which, he has defended, he has made “a small left-wing party” the reference of an entire political spectrum, above the formerly ruling Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK). In this sense, he has called for the renewal process to be completed as soon as possible in order to exercise the leadership of the opposition and continue to work as a “resistance” against the policies of the New Democracy and the far-right parties that have broken into parliament.
Tsipras, 48, is confident he can work for “a better tomorrow” in Greece and that he will do the same abroad. Syriza came second in the last elections, but received just under 17.84% of the vote and 47 seats, compared to the 158 MPs that New Dimokratia achieved thanks to 40.56% of the vote. The vote was marked by a record abstention of over 47% and eight parties entering Parliament.
Mitsotakis and his ministers already took office this week, a step ahead of a parliamentary process that will culminate with a confidence vote in the Council of Hellenes on July 8. During the three-day debate, the Prime Minister will present the main lines of action for the new legislature, although no major changes are expected compared to the legislature that has just ended.
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