In the national elections, Greeks living abroad vote for state parliamentarians of the party formation of their choice and cast the ballot without a cross in the ballot box.
By Antonis Anzoletou
The prime minister did not leave any unclear points in relation to the time of their holding elections during yesterday’s debate in Parliament. He replied to Alexis Tsipras without “asterisks” that the polls will be rigged at the end of four years. Nevertheless, the discussion is not going to stop during the summer. Because first of all the opposition parties, first of all SYRIZA, insist that these are not the prime minister’s real intentions. After all, everyone in politics knows how “elections are not announced”. And possibly Mr. Mitsotakis is trying to win, even to a degree, the advantage of surprise if he finally decides due to extraordinary circumstances not to exhaust the four-year period. There are many parameters that he must consider in order to make his final decision on when the polls will be held. The equation is not simple, as the war in Ukraine, the energy crisis, the Greek-Turkish relations, the accuracy, but also possible fires in the summer are the factors that will enter the scales in order to make the final decisions.
The vote of the emigrants
The electoral bill brought by Makis Voridis in the Parliament it signaled another alarm to the party apparatuses. Speaking to SKAI, the Minister of the Interior explained how “there are a number of provisions of internal electoral legislation that come from the Directorate of Elections and there are some streamlining, improvements that have to do with electoral legislation”. Specifically, it is foreseen that the registrations of Greeks abroad in the special electoral lists can be done one month before the announcement of the elections. The bill includes a provision stating that election materials are sent to diplomatic authorities ten days, not eight, before the start of voting. They are also predicted sanctions for party finances from 15,000 to 200,000 euros. For example, in cases of formations that in the pre-election period violate the regulation on the display of political messages and exceed the limit, a fine of 40% of the regular party grant is provided and 150,000 euros for parties that do not receive a party grant. The bill is expected to be voted on today and includes the implementation of the European regulation on collecting signatures from civil society and transferring requests to the legislature.
As for the Greeks abroad, according to the data provided by Makis Voridis to SKAI, they have been registered in the special electoral rolls just 2,000 emigrants. The specific list is updated monthly, but certainly the expectations are not too high. It is nevertheless estimated that as the elections approach, the number will increase. In the national elections, Greeks living abroad vote for state parliamentarians of the party formation of their choice and cast the ballot without a cross in the ballot box. 15 MPs will now be elected on the State ballot (from 12 today) and the three seats will be removed from Athens A, the South of Athens B and Achaia.
Pre-election movements
After the measures announced to limit the effects of the crisis on energy and fuel the ND looks to be gaining half a unit on polls, but SYRIZA shows approximately the same rise. The official opposition claims that towards the end of the summer, the accuracy will cause great and irreparable damage to the government. This is why they argue that early polls are a one-way street. According to the latest GPO survey, inflation, the energy crisis and Turkish provocation are fueling uncertainty among citizens. However, the measurement shows that they trust the current government more than SYRIZA.
The pre-election campaigns continue and Kyriakos Mitsotakis found himself in Super Market and to bank store in order to check how the digital card works. On Friday, he will be in Rhodope at the inauguration of the Greece-Bulgaria pipeline. Alexis Tsipras presented his program for universities, but also for housing policy. Nikos Androulakis continues in pre-election pace with tours throughout Greece, but also with his intervention in the European Parliament, which recalled his proposal to impose arms embargo in Turkey.
Today marks three years since the ND’s victory in the national elections and Kyriakos Mitsotakis is expected to give an interview on SKAI radio to Vassilis Chiotis and Pavlos Tsimas at 10.00 am.
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