Kyriakos Mitsotakis, a conservative who pushed for the recovery of the economy after the financial collapse, who has also been accused of serious attacks on the rule of law, won by a large margin Sunday’s parliamentary elections in Greece. New Democracy (ND) garnered 40.55% of the vote, more than double that of its main opponent, Alexis Tsipras’ Syriza (left), according to partial results corresponding to more than 97% of the vote. A result that will enable Mitsotakis to serve another term as prime minister.
During the campaign, the 55-year-old politician, close to Manfred Weber, the German leader of the European People’s Party (EPP), promised salary increases, at a time when the high cost of living and low incomes remain the main concerns of the population. the Greek citizens. And he also promised massive hiring for the public health sector, which has been hit by a blatant lack of resources since the crisis.
His first term was marked by the relaunch of an economy that was still recovering when he came to power in 2019 after years of drastic austerity plans that saw the country lose a quarter of its gross domestic product (GDP). Last year, growth reached 5.9%, but in March this year Mitsotakis faced an unprecedented wave of insurgency since he came to power after a train crash that killed 57 people and was blamed on serious system malfunctions. network.
Hailing from a large political family and owner of substantial real estate, his arrogance has been noticed by his detractors, starting with Syriza leader (left), former Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras.
Over the past four years, Mitsotakis has been implementing security reform, notably by strengthening the country’s police force. His mandate was also marked by scandals, one of which was very serious, involving the illegal wiretapping of political figures and journalists by the espionage program (spyware) Predator.
It is ubiquitous on social media and has an aggressive communication policy, in a media landscape characterized by the concentration of major titles and television channels in the hands of major financial groups. It also faces recurring allegations about repatriating migrants to neighboring Turkey before they can apply for asylum in the European Union.
Kyriakos Mitsotakis has always denied such practices, which is confirmed by videos and detailed investigations by major international media. “If he gets away with it, it will be because of a new form of populism […] no insulting rhetoric, no eccentricity, no fanfare’ like that of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán or former US President Donald Trump, recently wrote the German daily Süddeutsche Zeitung.
After the fatal sinking of a ship carrying hundreds of migrants off the Peloponnese on June 14, Mitsotakis defended the Greek coastguard, which non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and survivors accused of being slow to intervene. He also defended a “fair but strict” migration policy and in the spring promised to extend the “anti-migrant wall” that had been erected on the Greek-Turkish land border.
The four years in power have also been marked by setbacks in the rule of law and freedom of the press, such that since last year Greece has taken last place in the European Union (EU) in the annual rankings of the NGO Reporters Without Borders, behind Hungary and Poland .
Hailing from a Cretan political dynasty, Kyriakos Mitsotakis is the son of former Prime Minister Constantinos Mitsotakis (1990-1993); her sister was Secretary of State; one of the cousins is the current mayor of Athens and another was his closest adviser until 2022.
A graduate of Harvard and Stanford American Universities, Mitsotakis made his career as a financial adviser in London, namely at McKinsey, before taking on the family’s political role. In 2004, deputy of the ND for the first time, he was Minister of Administrative Reform at the height of the crisis, after he subsequently made massive cuts in public administration staff. In 2016, a year after the defeat of his political camp against the left of Alexis Tsipras, he was elected leader of New Democracy before becoming head of government three years later.
Source: DN
