Greece’s PM Mitsotakis Confirms General Election on May 21

Paul Tugwell
·2 min read
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(Bloomberg) -- Greece’s Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis confirmed a general vote on May 21, completing the formal process to call for an election that will take place in the aftermath of a deadly train crash which has shaken the country.

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The country is today very close to recovering its investment grade, a development that will mean lower borrowing costs for the state, businesses and households, the premier said Saturday. “This national goal, combined with the need for a strong representation of the country internationally, impose political stability over a four-year horizon,” Mitsotakis said.

The government has in practice completed its term, Mitsotakis said during a meeting with President Katerina Sakellaropoulou in Athens, completing the formal constitutional process to officially begin the campaign period. “I have the pleasure to hand you the cabinet meeting’s decision according to which we recommend the dissolution of parliament and the holding of elections on May 21.”

The announcement was made when the Greek parliament was already closed for the Orthodox Easter holidays, meaning that it will remain closed until the vote. Parliamentary activity will also be halted following the vote during the time given for the parties to try to form a government.

The popularity of Mitsotakis’s center-right New Democracy party has declined in polls after the deadliest train crash in Greece’s history late on Feb. 28, but the party is still leading over the leftist Syriza party of former premier Alexis Tsipras.

Following a change to the electoral law introduced by Tsipras, the May general election will take place under a full proportional representation system that makes it almost impossible to have a one-party government, making a second round of voting likely in the event that political parties will not be able to form a coalition government.

In this case, Greeks will be called to vote again about a month after the first ballot and the second elections will be held using a semi-proportional system introduced by Mitsotakis that will make it easier to put together an administration.

--With assistance from Sotiris Nikas.

(Updates with Mitsotakis’s quote from second paragraph.)

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