SYRIZA, Greece’s former ruling left-wing party, chose a new leader on Sunday following a year marked by internal strife and waning support.
Sokratis Famellos, 58, defeated fellow lawmaker Pavlos Polakis and two other candidates in a vote open to all party members and people aligned to the group.
The results showed Famellos received 49.41 percent, Pavlos Pollakis 43.51 percent, Nikolas Farantouris 5.09 percent, and Apostolos Gletsos 1.99 percent.
The 50 percent plus one vote threshold required to avoid a runoff was not achieved. However, Polakis conceded the election. “I want to congratulate Sokratis Famellos. A runoff is not needed. We must stay united to organize the fight against Mitsotakis’ deep state,” Polakis said.
“We are starting tonight, united,” Famellos stressed in his first statements as the newly elected leader of SYRIZA-Progressive Alliance outside the party’s headquarters.
“In these elections, the large participation but also the new registrations showed first of all that SYRIZA-Progressive Alliance is here and I believe that this is a message that unites us all,” he underlined.
Famellos also stated that “these results are also an answer to all those who questioned SYRIZA’s next day. But we are here and the citizens, the members of SYRIZA, gave a clear response today, they decided to press the restart button.”
SYRIZA’s electoral appeal has been steadily eroding
SYRIZA’s electoral appeal has been steadily eroding. After winning over 35 percent of the vote in 2015 to enter government in alliance with a populist conservative party, it dropped to 31 percent in 2019, when the conservative New Democracy party regained power.
It received just 14 percent in the European elections last June. Recent opinion polls show party support dropping to single digits, while defections among lawmakers mean it is no longer the main opposition group in parliament, having been displaced by the socialist PASOK.
Just over 70,000 voted in Sunday’s election, fewer than half the number in the previous election, in September 2023, when Stefanos Kasselakis, a political neophyte and businessman who had lived for most of his life in the United States, triumphed.
Ousted SYRIZA leader Kasselakis launches Movement for Democracy
Kasselakis, ousted by a vote of no confidence in September 2024, announced his own party, Movement for Democracy, on Saturday. The name was chosen following a three-day online vote among the organization’s supporters.
Speaking before a crowd of supporters, including several independent lawmakers, the 36-year-old outlined his vision for a new era of Greek politics. He emphasized that his party is not merely a “refresh” of existing political models but an innovative movement driven by a deep sense of Greece’s progressive past.
Kasselakis highlighted his party’s foundational principles, which are centered around participatory democracy, fostering entrepreneurship, and ensuring social mobility – what he called the “Greek Dream.”
His vision includes a commitment to a strong, independent judiciary and a fair, inclusive society where everyone has the right to work and the benefits of a social safety net.
Related: The Age of Mistrust: The Breakdown of Faith in Greek Politicians
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