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Governing ND Falls Ahead of Greek Ballot
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - The governing New Democracy (ND) party has lost public support in Greece over the past two months, according to a poll by Metron Analysis. 31 per cent of respondents would vote for the ND in next month's parliamentary election, down 5.8 points since June.
The Pan-Hellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) is a close second with 29.5 per cent, followed by the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) with seven per cent, the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYR) with 4.3 per cent, and the People's Orthodox Alarm (LAOS) with 3.5 per cent.
In the March 2004 election, Kostas Karamanlis led the ND to victory, securing 165 seats in the Greek Parliament. PASOK had administered the government since January 1996. Current PASOK leader George Papandreou served as foreign minister under Kostas Simitis.
On Aug. 17, Karamanlis announced that an early parliamentary election would take place on Sept. 16. Karamanlis cited the need for a "new mandate" in order to carry a set of economic and bureaucratic reforms. In a televised address, he declared: "Not everything has been corrected. We need a new mandate for a better future."
On Aug. 22, Karamanlis defended his party's record, saying, "We made good on our pledges; we achieved what was unattainable by other past governments. However, this is not enough; we do not say that we have solved the problem, we are still not satisfied." The prime minister said the country's unemployment rate of 7.7 per cent in May "confirms" Greece's "significant economic turnaround."
Polling Data
What party would you support in the next parliamentary election?
Aug. 2007 | Jun. 2007 | May 2007 | |
New Democracy (ND) | 31.0% | 36.8% | 33.4% |
Pan-Hellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) | 29.5% | 35.8% | 32.0% |
Communist Party of Greece (KKE) | 7.0% | 6.4% | 6.8% |
Coalition of the Radical Left (SYR) | 4.3% | 3.8% | 3.6% |
People's Orthodox Alarm (LAOS) | 3.5% | 3.8% | 4.4% |
Source: Metron Analysis
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,056 Greek adults, conducted from Aug. 20 to Aug. 22, 2007. No margin of error was provided.