ATHENS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 28th March, 2023) Greece's parliamentary elections will be held in May, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced on Tuesday during a cabinet meeting.
"The country and the citizens need clear horizons. The general elections will take place on May 21, at the end of the four-year term of the current government, as I promised. And if a clear majority is not secured in the first round, a second round will take place in early July," he said.
He also noted that the current simple proportional representation system might not allow the formation of a stable government with a majority of seats.
According to Greek media reports, Mitsotakis had previously avoided giving an exact date in an attempt to delay the elections in the hope of narrowing the popularity gap between his governing New Democracy party and the largest opposition party, Coalition of the Radical Left - Progressive Alliance (SYRIZA) led by former Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. The elections will occur in the shadow of the rail disaster on March 1, 2023 near the city of Larissa, in which 57 people were killed.
