Polls & Research

PASOK Leads Ruling ND in Greece

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - The opposition Pan-Hellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) is now the most popular political party in Greece, according to a poll by ALCO published in Ta Nea. 30.3 per cent of respondents would vote for PASOK in the next general election.

The governing New Democracy (ND) is second with 26.8 per cent, followed by the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYR) with eight per cent, the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) with seven per cent, and the People’s Orthodox Alarm (LAOS) with four 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.

Greek voters renewed their Parliament in September 2007. Final results gave Karamanlis a second term in office, with 41.84 cent of the vote and 152 seats in the 300-member legislature. PASOK finished second, with 38.10 per cent and 102 lawmakers. In November, Papandreou defeated Evangelos Venizelos and Kostas Skandalidis in a special PASOK leadership ballot.

Earlier this month, Karamanlis expelled lawmaker Petros Tatoulis from the ND. In an interview, Tatoulis had criticized the government, saying, "New Democracy was elected in 2004 under the banner of combating corruption and refounding the state. So let’s not complain now about all the talk about scandals. We asked for it."

Polling Data

What party would you support in Greece’s next general election?

Pan-Hellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK)	30.3%
New Democracy (ND)	26.8%
Coalition of the Radical Left (SYR)	8.0%
Communist Party of Greece (KKE)	7.0%
People’s Orthodox Alarm (LAOS)	4.0%

Source: ALCO / Ta Nea
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,000 Greek adults, conducted on Nov. 12 and Nov. 13, 2008. No margin of error was provided.