Crisis in SYRIZA: 9 MPs resign
In Greece, nine members of parliament, including two Western Thrace Turks, have resigned from the main opposition party, the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA).
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SYRIZA, nine members of parliament, including figures who served as ministers during the party's time in government, have submitted their resignations to the party secretariat.
PARTY ACCUSED OF SHIFTING TO THE 'RIGHT'
The names who resigned are as follows: Efi Achtsioglou, Sia Anagnostopoulou, Nasos Iliopoulos, Dimitris Tzanakopoulos, Meropi Tzoufi, Theano Fotiou, Alexis Charitsis, Hüseyin Zeybek, and Özgür Ferhat.
In their statement, the MPs recalled that the general elections in May and June brought the New Democracy Party to power with a strong mandate, and stated that 'the political axis in the country is shifting to the right and far-right.'
SEAT COUNT DROPS TO 36
The statement also claimed that SYRIZA is experiencing a crisis of fragmentation: “The party's new leader and leadership cadre refuse to grasp the political essence of the problem and engage in discussion. (Stefanos Kasselakis) was elected democratically but is continuing on an undemocratic path. He is tearing the party apart.”
SYRIZA had won the right to be represented by 47 MPs in the 300-seat parliament in the June 2023 general elections. Two MPs had left the party at the beginning of November. With these latest resignations, the party's number of seats in parliament has fallen to 36.
KASSELAKIS'S PARTY JOURNEY
In the presidential elections held in SYRIZA in September, Kasselakis took the leadership seat by leaving his closest rival, Achtsioglou, behind.
Kasselakis, who had not previously held a position as an MP or minister, was introduced to SYRIZA in 2021.
Kasselakis became a parliamentary candidate in the May and June 2023 general elections at the invitation of former SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras, who brought SYRIZA to power in 2015, but he was unable to win a seat in parliament.