A landmark reform is the bill for the marriage of same-sex couples, reports POLITICO in an article, speaking at the same time of a progressive shift by the prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

In particular, the article notes that Greece’s Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the EU’s most prominent centre-right leader, is not among the candidates one would expect to introduce a landmark bill to legalize same-sex marriage, which is scheduled to be put to a vote in Parliament next week.

As POLITICO notes, this reform, which provokes reactions in Mitsotakis’ traditional core in the Christian Orthodox country and will rely on the support of left-wing opposition parties to be voted on on February 15, 2015. About a quarter of his own MPs will not support the bill.

The publication speaks of an expected reaction of the Church “with Archbishop Hieronymos, its highest-ranking cleric, having said that the issue should go to a national referendum.

Metropolitans across the country are holding rallies on Sunday, while Piraeus Metropolitan Seraphim called gay marriage a sin and warned MPs that “those who vote for him cannot remain members of the church”.

“Given that traditional family values ​​would normally be the prerogative of Mitsotakis’s conservative New Democracy, the question arises as to what he is up to, but most analysts believe he will emerge not only unscathed, but strengthened by his progressive thrust.”

Having already strengthened his influence on the Right, Mitsotakis is in a position to maneuver towards the liberal center and do even more damage to Greece’s damaged Greek Left, which is also deeply divided over same-sex marriage. His country’s alignment with 20 other European states bolsters his credentials as a key player in the EU mainstream, potentially allowing him to seek top EU posts after his term ends,” Politico comments.

Mitsotakis presents his bill, which will also recognize the right of same-sex couples to adopt, as a purely moral decision, “a matter of equality”. He said that it is not acceptable in a democracy “to have two classes of citizens and certainly not to have children of an inferior God”.

Analysts, however, pointed out that he is now so impregnable on the Right after his landslide victory last year that he is free to invade centrist and liberal territory when he sees fit,” the report said.

The European mainstream

Greek media have speculated that Mitsotakis could also play in front of an international audience, hoping to repair damage to his government’s reputation from a spying scandal and concerns about media freedom.

Politico notes, however, that if the prime minister “moves in the direction of Brussels, this is unlikely to happen for several years, or at least not before the end of his four-year term in 2027. “After all, it would be difficult for Mitsotakis to find a big post after June’s European elections, as both European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Parliament President Roberta Metzola, who wish to remain in their posts, both come from the European People’s Party, the same political family with the Greek Prime Minister”.

The publication states that the most prominent dissenter in the ruling party is former Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, who has rejected the idea of ​​MPs abstaining from voting.

State Minister Makis Voridis, another high-profile rebel, has said he intends to abstain from the vote, but argued the bill has “constitutionality issues”. Voridis is perhaps the first minister in Greece’s modern history who openly opposes major legislation of his own government, but continues to participate in it.

“These internal ultraconservative voices, when expressed as a reaction or protest rather than the official party line, work in favor of Mitsotakis’ moderate profile,” Panagiotis Koustenis told Politico.

The Left is divided

However, the issue of same-sex marriage and adoption also divides the Left, the article states.

“Syriza is headed by Stefanos Kaselakis, the first openly gay party leader in Greece, who recently married his partner in the US. Kaselakis announced that he would toe the party line in favor of the legislation, but leading party figures openly disagreed with that decision. One of his closest allies, Pavlos Polakis, said he would struggle to defend the bill among his traditional voters in the mountains of Crete.

At the same time, the publication also talks about PASOK’s unclear stance, which “oscillates between political expediency and principles. Its leader, Nikos Androulakis, stated that the opposition should not be used to resolve the internal divisions of the ruling party and that “it will not tie Mitsotakis’s shoelaces”.

The KKE said it opposes the legislation, arguing that “marriage between persons of the same sex means the abolition of paternity-maternity.”