His Nea Dimokratia party would get between 36 and 40% of the vote, ahead of the left-wing Syriza party (between 25 and 29%).
By Le Figaro with AFP
Published 2023-05-21 at 6:06 PM, updated on 2023-05-21 at 6:21 PM
This content is not accessible to all.
Greek Prime Minister and leader of the conservative New Democracy party Kyriakos Mitsotakis arrives at the party headquarters after general elections May 21, 2023 in Athens, Greece. LOUIZA VRADI / Portal
The right-wing party of outgoing Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has won the general elections in Greece on Sunday (21 May), according to polls, but if the result is confirmed there could be problems forming a stable government.
The New Democracy (ND), which has been in power for four years, would get between 36% and 40% of the vote, ahead of former Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’ left-wing Syriza party, which would get between 25% and 29% of the vote. according to these polls. Released at the end of polls by TV channels. Behind, the socialist party Pasok-Kinal would win between 9.5 and 12.5% of the vote.
This content is not accessible to all.
The first partial results will follow
First partial results should be released in the next two hours, but if confirmed, ND’s result would not allow him to rule alone. However, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who wants to be reappointed for four years, has ruled out forming a coalition in a country whose political culture is not based on compromise. For his part, Alexis Tsipras appealed to the leader of the socialist party Pasok-Kinal, Nikos Androulakis, to form an alliance, but the latter made demands.
” ALSO READ – Greece: The return of Yanis Varoufakis carried by young people
Should it not be possible to form a government in the next two weeks, which many analysts are predicting, new elections will have to be called for late June or early July. The winner of this second ballot would then benefit from a bonus of up to 50 seats, likely giving them a stable majority.
Throughout his campaign, the Conservative leader, a Harvard graduate and son of a former prime minister, has never stopped flaunting his economic record. This Sunday, after the vote in Athens, he assured that he wanted to make Greece “a stronger country with an important role in Europe”. “We’re voting for our future, for more jobs and better jobs, for a more efficient healthcare system,” he said, accompanied by two of his three adult children.
6% growth
Falling unemployment, growth of almost 6% in the last year, return of investments and boom in tourism: the economy has picked up speed again after years of acute crisis and European rescue plans. His opponent, who embodied the hopes of the far left in Europe in 2015, wanted these elections to be “a day of hope” to “put behind four difficult years” with a government that was “arrogant and uninterested”. most numerous”.
” ALSO READ – Political instability returns in Greece
Declining purchasing power and difficulties in making ends meet remain the top concerns of a population that has made painful sacrifices over the past decade. Many Greeks have to make do with low wages and, after drastic diets to lose weight, have lost faith in drastically cut public services. The country still suffers from a public debt of more than 170% of its GDP.
This content is not accessible to all.
And inflation was close to 10% last year, adding to the difficulties of the population. “It’s getting worse and worse. We only work to survive,” laments Giorgos Antonopoulos, 39, a store worker in Thessaloniki, the country’s second largest city. At the end of February, the train crash that killed 57 people sparked the anger that has been eating away at Greece since the crisis and sparked demonstrations against the government accused of negligence.
” ALSO READ – Greece: Five arrested on attempted massive fraud in general election
Since taking power, critics of Kyriakos Mitsotakis have accused him of an authoritarian tendency. His mandate was riddled with scandals, from illegal wiretapping to the refusal of migrants to police violence. According to Dutch MEP Sophie in’t Veld, in March the European Parliament denounced “serious threats to the rule of law and fundamental rights” in Greece.
Greece, which comes last in the EU in terms of press freedom in Reporters Without Borders’ annual ranking, is also regularly accused of turning migrants back into Turkey. This Friday, the American newspaper New York Times published a video testifying to such illegal practices, which Athens vehemently denies.