By Antonis Anzoletou

This year’s September 3rd anniversary was different for the PASOK. There were plenty of smiles after the increase in the percentages in the recent elections and everyone in Harilaou Trikoupi believes that the party has moved on to another era. 2015, when he narrowly won the ticket for the Parliament with 4.68%, was the pivotal year and the resounding “bell” for changes that needed to be made. The new era was initially marked by the presidency of the late Fofi Gennimata with Nikos Androulakis taking over at the end of 2021.

The municipal elections are the first important for the “green camp”. “crash test” to show that the relationships it has built over the years with local communities have not been lost. Hoping that the victories he will achieve in about a month will take on political characteristics. The two difficult rounds, as well as the alliances that will be reflected in the repeat elections on October 15, are important. It will be the first step for them to prove to Harilaou Trikoupi that they can become the new official opposition and enter powerfully into the conflicts of the Parliament and with claims in the battle of the European elections in June. The “equation” is clearly more complex, as Alexis Tsipras may no longer be the big obstacle, but no one knows what the election of the new leader in Koumoundourou will mean for the political balance. PASOK succeeded in securing its political autonomy in the May and June elections and they consider this very important. The next step will be the political hegemony of the center-left.

In today’s Political Council of the movement, all issues will be put on the table, as the local government elections are approaching. In the Peloponnese, the picture was not good, while phenomena were recorded where “green” executives finally found political shelter in “blue” candidates. A decision has already been made, as in SYRIZA, that executives who choose other combinations will have their party membership suspended. Apart from Stavros Arnautakis, the bet for Nikos Androulakis is how many regional governor candidates he will see get the ticket for the second round. A very good sign of recovery will be significant participation in regional and municipal councils. In the long run, with the initiatives that will be taken, it is expected that the party’s intervention at the local level will be strengthened. MPs and executives have already been called to help in all 13 regions of the country.

The party’s schedule includes the presence of Nikos Androulakis at the International Exhibition of Thessaloniki on September 15.