Greek election: Mitsotakis calls for another poll, possibly on June 25 after failing to reach majority

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday called for another election, most possibly on June 25, after his New Democracy party managed to trump the opponents in the parliamentary elections held on Sunday, but fell short of a majority.

With most votes counted, the conservative party had gained nearly 41 per cent of the vote share and was en routeto achieving victory in at least 146 seats of the 300-seat Hellenic Parliament.The majority mark is 151 and with Mitsotakis not enthused about forging coalitions, the stage is set for another round of electoral fight.

Mitsotakis made the announcement after meeting Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou earlier in the day where he was granted a three-day mandate to form a coalition government. He said that instead of forming a coalition, he will call for another general election.

“I intend to return the exploratory mandate to you this afternoon so that we can hold elections, possibly even on June 25,” Mitsotakis told Sakellaropoulou on Monday, Politico reported.“There are no conditions for the formation of a government.”

"The people wanted the choice of a Greece run by a majority government and by New Democracy without the help of others," Mitsotakis said in a victory speech.

“The citizens want a strong government with a four-year horizon. Today’s political earthquake calls on all of us to speed up the process for a definitive government solution," he added.

Electoral rule changes in Greece

Notably, four years ago, winning over 41 per cent of the vote would have easily allowed the party to format government. However,changes in electoral rules mean that more than 45 per cent vote share is required as the winning party is no longer entitled to a 50-seat bonus in the first round.

A second election will take place on July 2 and under the new laws, the winner will be given a boost of up to 50 of Parliament's 300 seats.

Tsipras disappointed with the result

This is the first election since the country was freed from the supervision of international lenders who had provided bailout funds over the last few years.

Mitsotakis, 55, a Harvard-educated former banker was facing a stiff competitor in 48-year-old Alexis Tsipras, who heads the left-wing Syriza party and served as prime minister during some of the financial crisis’ most turbulent years. However, after the poll outcome, Tsipras described his party's performance as "extremely negative".

During the canvassing trail, Mitsotakis promised to build on his earlier work, having taken the country out of financial duress. Taking a leaf out of US President Joe Biden's book, Mitsotakis used the "Let’s finish what we started" slogan to attract the voters.

Meanwhile,Tsipras used thecost of living crisis as a poll plankto woo voters by offering to increase the minimum wage and create more jobs.

(With inputs from agencies)

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