Former prime minister Alexis Tsipras is set to present the name and founding declaration of his new party on Tuesday, calling for the unity of progressives and the Left, in a long-awaited move ahead of the general elections set for next year.
Tsipras will also present the party’s core leadership team at an event in Thiseio, central Athens, at around 8 p.m.
In his speech, he is expected to stress that “united, we may confront all the problems that undermine our country, the dignity of our people, democracy, equality and trust in institutions, so that we can build a country that is democratic, fair, creative and modern. And so that justice and integrity cease to be under persecution and democracy under restriction.”
The move comes as the political space of the left and centre-left undergoes significant reorganization, with Tsipras’ new party expected to attract officials from both SYRIZA and the New Left. Over the weekend, Dionysis Temponeras, a prominent SYRIZA member, resigned from the party in support of Tsipras’ initiative, while several New Left MPs are also expected to follow.
Earlier this month, Tsipras presented a lengthy political manifesto on how the Left could return to government in Greece, drafted by a working group in his Alexis Tsipras Institute, focused on “bringing together the three chief tendencies in the contemporary Left: Social Democrats, the Radical Left and Greens.”
