As we can see, we are in the twilight of the government’s second four-year term, and the political chatter is obsessing over when elections will be held, despite the prime minister’s assurances that he will complete his term – meaning that ballot boxes will open in the spring of 2027. In politics, events determine strategies and early elections cannot be ruled out, but there are many factors that suggest they will be held on time. So, it would be a blessing if those involved in politics and in the state’s functioning got to grips with the problems that plague the country rather than wait for elections.
Kyriakos Mitsotakis has invested a lot of political capital in cultivating the image of a politician who acts institutionally
In the fluid political climate, with new parties being born and others fading, it is natural that the prime minister will consider his options and weigh the scene after elections, whether they be held early or not. Aside from these considerations, there is also the human factor, the way in which the prime minister thinks. Kyriakos Mitsotakis has invested a lot of political capital in cultivating the image of a politician who acts institutionally, and in arguing that his government achieved stability and continues to provide it. If the prime minister calls early elections and does not manage to convince people that he deserves a new governing majority, he knows that he will be the one responsible for the ensuing instability, not the voters. Mitsotakis is sure to have this in mind. If he is counting on the inability to form a coalition government after the elections leading to a second round in which me might win more votes, he also knows that in that case he will have to deal with former prime minister Alexis Tsipras in Parliament, with the latter’s newly-formed ELAS party playing a greater role in the deliberations to form a government. As for another former prime minister, Antonis Samaras (who was expelled from New Democracy), it is possible that government cadres will be weighing the dangers of his forming a party and it being given enough time to establish itself. But Samaras appears to be drawing support from people who would vote for him whether elections are held early or on time. In any case, polls indicate that any support his party would get would not necessarily be at New Democracy’s expense.
