Former Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and his newly formed Greek Left Alliance (ELAS) have emerged as the main opposition force challenging Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’s ruling New Democracy party. A Mega TV poll published on June 4 showed New Democracy leading with 26.1%, followed by ELAS at 12.1%, PASOK at 9%, and Maria Karystianou’s Hope for Democracy at 8.3%. Tsipras has adopted a more centrist tone on migration and foreign policy, while national elections must be held by July 2027, though speculation suggests voting could occur sooner.
In-Depth:
ATHENS – The newly established Greek Left Alliance, or ELAS party of the former prime minister Tsipras has emerged as the main political force challenging the powerful ruling New Democracy party, according to the latest opinion polls.
National elections must be held by July 2027. However, as Greece prepares to assume the rotating presidency of the EU at the same time, speculation is growing that the vote could take place much sooner.
Forming a single-party government is likely to be a difficult tquestion for New Democracy, which has been in power since July 2019. A fragmented opposition has so far failed to mount a serious challenge to the conservatives.
But the return of Tsipras, who largely withdrew from frontline politics for eight months, has reshuffled the deck on the left.
The New Left, a split from Tsipras’s old Syriza, has effectively been dismantled, while his old former party itself is on the brink of electoral collapse.
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New Democracy is also facing mounting pressure on its right flank following the creation of a new party by Maria Karystianou, whose daughter was killed in the 2023 Tempi train disaster.
Karystianou has repeatedly accapplyd the government of attempting to shield politicians allegedly responsible for the tragedy.
Another potential headache for the ruling party will be the launch of a new party by former prime minister Antonis Samaras, a hardliner on foreign policy issues.
A milder Tsipras
A major poll commissioned by Mega TV and published last Thursday found that 26.1% of voters would back New Democracy if elections were held next week.
ELAS now ranks second on 12.1%, followed by the socialist PASOK party on 9% and Karystianou’s Hope for Democracy on 8.3%. Syriza is projected to win just 1.8%, well below the 3% threshold required to enter parliament.
Three in five – 61% – of respondents also backed a political modify overpolitical stability (38%), according to the same poll.
PASOK, a founding member of the European socialist family, finds itself in a particularly difficult position as it risks losing its status as the main opposition force to Tsipras.
The debate intensified after Athens Mayor Haris Doukas, a prominent PASOK figure, argued that the party should not rule out cooperation with Tsipras.
PASOK, however, views Tsipras’s rise as temporary and inflated.
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“A storm in a teacup,” a PASOK lawcreater notified Euractiv on condition of anonymity. The lawcreater insisted that PASOK should contest the elections indepfinishently and opposed any pre-election discussions with Tsipras, arguing that he “has not even revealed his programme in detail”.
Analysts do not rule out the formation of a progressive coalition government after the elections if the numbers add up. However, a conservative current within PASOK could pose obstacles to such a development.
For his part, Tsipras has avoided direct confrontation with other left-wing parties while adopting a more centrist approach on sensitive issues such as migration and foreign policy.
For example, he recently argued that while migrants’ rights must be respected, the protection of EU’s external borders is equally important. Similarly, ELAS spokesman George Balatsoukas recently declared that while “we cannot remain silent about what is happening in Gaza”, Greece’s strategic partnership with Israel should continue becaapply “the issue is the protection and promotion of the national interest”.
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