The new Greek parliament that emerged from the general elections on May 21 was constituted this Sunday, one day before its planned dissolution to make way for a new suffrage in the country.
The 300 deputies that make up the chamber were sworn in in the presence of the Greek head of state, Katerina Sakelaropulu, and the technical cabinet headed by the interim prime minister, magistrate Ioannis Sarmás, who took office last Friday, according to the EFE news agency. .
As confirmed by the state news agency NAMA, parliament will be dissolved on Monday, as all attempts to form a new government in Greece have failed after elections held a week ago.
The session was chaired by the former first vice president of Parliament, Nikitas Kaklamanis, while the head of the Greek Orthodox Church, Archbishop Jerome II of Athens, carried out the consecration of the chamber, in line with the established practice in the country.
The new president and vice-presidents of the parliamentary chamber will be elected on Monday, before Sakelaropulu signs the presidential decree that will dissolve parliament and call new elections, scheduled for June 25.
The main parties failed to agree on a coalition after last Sunday’s elections, in which New Democracy (ND), the political force of outgoing conservative Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, obtained more than 40% of the vote, giving rise to a provisional government headed by Judge Ioannis Sarmas, until now president of the Court of Accounts.
Despite the victory, Mitsotakis failed to achieve an absolute majority as was his goal and therefore immediately appealed for new legislative elections.
Left-wing former prime minister Alexis Tsipras, whose Syriza party won only 71 parliamentary terms, acknowledged suffering “a painful and unexpected blow” on Sunday with only around 20% of the vote, less than half that of his main opponent.
This is the second time a “two-day parliament” has been formed in Greece since the fall of the military junta in 1974.
The first was in May 2012, when, in the midst of the financial crisis, the main political parties obtained in the elections one of the lowest percentages of votes in their history, making the constitution of an executive unfeasible.
Source: TSF
