A supporter of SYRIZA watches the exit polls at the main polling kiosk of their party at Klafthmonos Square, in central Athens, on May 21, 2023. The party received 17.83% of the vote, the lowest since the May 2012 legislative election. [Michael Varaklas/AP]
SYRIZA’s collapse and the rise of new parties that are being built around their leaders (one of whom is former SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras), highlight the shallowness of Greece’s political scene, which is based more on personalities, traditional ideological prejudices, and outdated reenactments rather than on programs.
If we build with random playing cards, as SYRIZA did in its rise from the customary 3% it would get in elections to attaining power, and then, when it sought to expand while in opposition again, we should not be surprised when the whole thing collapses like a house of cards.
This should be a lesson for Tsipras, as it is difficult to discern whether he has learned anything from what SYRIZA has been going through, or if he will repeat the model of a party in which the leader holds absolute power, who improvises, who picks those who will join the party, without consulting others. This would be useful also for the leaders, cadres and voters of other parties which have no identity other than as vehicles for their leader.
