Odysseas Konstantinopoulos, PASOK Member of Parliament for Arcadia and vice-president of the Parliament, in a letter to the members of the political council of the party, requests the speeding up of procedures for the election of new leadership in PASOK, first making an assessment of the election result for Harilaou Trikoupi.

“So, I request immediately, within the next week, that the bodies of PASOK convene, and decide on the specific schedule: The electoral procedures for the leadership of the faction, provided for in the statute for 2025, be accelerated, so that by the end of this year , that both these and the subsequent Congress for the promotion of our policies and the election of our collective bodies have been completed. Restart leadership, political, organizational, for PASOK and the great faction of the Center-Left”, says Mr. Konstantinopoulos in his letter.

The letter of Konstantinopoulos

“Dear Secretary

Friends of the Political Council

A few days after the European elections, I decided to share some thoughts with you about the future of the faction. No personal anxiety about the future, but anxiety about the faction.

The messages of the European elections were clear to everyone.

  • New Democracy not only did not achieve its goal, but the election result was for it a message of disapproval for its policies and attitudes. It keeps her alive, that the opposition parties have not convinced the people.
  • The party of Mr. Kasselakis, which after the departure of the executives, obtained a single-digit percentage in the polls, registered a percentage of 14.9% in the European elections, having a different political audience that has nothing to do with the progressive space.
  • The far-right as a whole surpasses the second party in terms of percentages, “caging” 700,000 people, and is preparing to follow the path of the other far-right parties in Europe, towards power.

The faction fought another crucial electoral battle. And he gave it with a clear political stake: that PASOK – refusing to be trapped in the political entrenchment of a protest party or sterile negativism, i.e. to turn into a “KKE of the center” – as president N. Androulakis had aptly pointed out – is prospectively seeking, and in view of the next parliamentary elections, to look the ND in the eye and contrast a convincing alternative counterproposal for the governance of the country.

Allow me a little analysis of the percentages from 2015:

In January 2015 in the National Elections our party received 4.7% (with 290,000 votes) and everyone is talking about the end of PASOK.

But in the National Elections in September 2015 he received 6.3% (with 342,000 votes, i.e. with 52,000 more votes).

In the national elections of July 2019, PASOK with 8.1% increased voters by 115,000 compared to 2015 to 458,000 (an increase of
around 34%) when SYRIZA lost 145,000 voters, while New Democracy massively increased its voters by 725,000 reaching 2,250,000 voters.

In the 2023 elections, we had another increase that confirms the steady upward trend of the faction, since we again got a double-digit percentage.

However, the 160,000 additional voters in June 2023 compared to 2019 fall far short of the 851,000 voters who left SYRIZA and the 136,000 who left New Democracy, which in total add up to 1 million voters.

In addition, it is extremely problematic that in the European elections PASOK lost 168,000 voters.

When New Democracy and SYRIZA lost 50% of their voters, about 2 million.

New Democracy lost about 1.3 million voters out of 2.4 million voters in May 2023.

SYRIZA lost about 592,000 voters out of 1,184,000 voters in May 2023.

Marginal rise with 0.95% is not underestimated by anyone. But in no case does it show a tendency to acquire majority characteristics.

It is the third electoral contest under the current leadership that the urban centers have the same picture in terms of percentages.

The intervention of the parties in the urban centers is done mainly through the central political image that you transmit and cannot be covered only organizationally.

The campaign, the slogan and in which media you reproduce it are very important. Our party’s goal of second place in the European elections was not achieved. Does the high stakes remain?

Of course. It is a political obligation of all progressive citizens, of all the most actively involved executives, and even more so of established and historically charged political parties, such as PASOK, to continue to insist that:

  • The Greeks, our country and our democracy deserve a counter-proposal of governance that is different in character and priorities.
  • We cannot allow the coordinated evolution of the political systems of the majority of European countries, highlighting those of the extreme right, intolerance and Euroscepticism as dominant forces, to take place in an emphatic way in our country as well. We will not let the extreme right be found across the right, and for that there is no time to lose.

The faction must take advantage of the political time and not waste it until the national elections. PASOK has procedures for the election of leadership in 2025. At the same time, there must be a provision for the expansion in the space of the center-left.

  • The expansion and unification of forces in the space of the center-left must have grassroots characteristics that will unite it. Progressive and patriotic policies.
  • Enlargement is not the addition of numbers, percentages or MPs, which will go against the fresh popular will.
  • To succeed, it must be guided by principles and values. Otherwise there is a risk of it appearing as a ‘chairs’ deal.

I make it clear that for me Mr. Kasselakis has nothing to do with the centre-left. But there are dozens of executives at the central level and thousands at the base that we could “walk” together. But mainly it is the more than 2 million citizens who did not go to vote and it is the people of the center, up to the renewalist left.

All of this, in order to be done, requires clear solutions, as well as leadership that has time ahead of it.

Let’s be honest, there are executives, who do exist, and who have ambitions to lead PASOK and the Center-Left.

It happened in the past, it happens now. We know that a long pre-election period would create introversion.

With my proposal, the leadership that will be chosen will have the whole year ahead of them to advance the processes with fresh popular will.

I would like to recall the example of Fofi Gennimata who was elected in July 2015 and in an effort to grow the faction, after 2 years in November 2017 she put her mandate at the disposal of the citizens, with the participation of then President Nikos Androulakis, while had a positive, for the season, result of 6.29%, from 4.6%.

Today it is imperative not to allow the waters to stagnate and not to become bogged down. We need a strong reboot! A new strong legitimizing order to put into practice the great PASOK of our expectations, with leadership that mobilizes broader social forces.

Therefore, I request immediately, within the next week, that the bodies of PASOK convene, and decide on the specific schedule:

The electoral procedures for the leadership of the faction, provided for in the statute for 2025, should be accelerated, so that by the end of this year, both these and the subsequent Congress for the selection of our policies and the election of our collective bodies will be completed.

Restart leadership, political, organizational, for PASOK and the great faction of the Center-Left!

Friends

It’s time to face the truth. Not with evasions, but with real perspective. Only then will we see clearly the future of the faction. “KKE of the Center” or a Government proposal that will rally wider forces and become a majority.

The choice is in our hands.”

Harilaou Trikoupi’s answer

Circles of Harilaou Trikoupis commented on her proposal by Odysseus Konstantinopouloswho requested an acceleration of the internal party procedures for the election of a new PASOK leadership:

“PASOK is in need of extroversion movements, which is not served by hasty and coordinated public interventions by those who allegedly interfere with the institutional functions of the institutions.

We will not allow the party to sink into introversion and what was built with efforts and sacrifices in recent years, to be lost in a few days.

In any case, respect for statutory functions and provisions is the guarantor of unity.

The schedule of proceedings will be followed to the letter in accordance with the statute.

The issue now is the fair evaluation of the election result in order to draw fruitful conclusions and to build the party’s strategy and the movements for the reconstruction of the democratic faction”.