Greek conservatives win parliamentary majority, declare mandate for change


Greece's conservative New Democracy party won a decisive victory in Sunday's national elections, securing party leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis a second four-year term as prime minister.
New Democracy won about 40.5% of the vote, more than twice the 18% earned by the main center-left opposition Syriza party. New Democracy's vote share was about the same as in a first round of voting in May, but under new rules for a second election, the party gained 50 bonus seats, giving it an estimated 158 seats in the 300-seat Parliament. Voter turnout dropped 8 percentage points from May, to 53%.
Voters "gave us a strong mandate to move faster on the course of the big changes our country needs," Mitsotakis said on television. He told celebrating supporters in Athens that New Democracy is now "the most powerful center-right party in Europe."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Greeks appeared to overlook a series of scandals that surrounded Mitsotakis and his government in the past year, as well as a deadly Feb. 28 passenger train crash and a boat tragedy 11 days ago that left an estimated 500 migrants dead. Instead, voters cited the growing economy and lower unemployment as their main electoral issues.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Savages: a tragi-comedy set in a 'quirky handcrafted world'
The Week Recommends This new animated film by Oscar-nominated filmmaker Claude Barras is undeniably political, but it has a hopeful message
-
Why 'faceless bots' are interviewing job hunters
In The Spotlight Artificial intelligence is taking over a crucial part of recruitment
-
Who will win the battle for the soul of the Green Party?
An ideological divide is taking root among the environmentalists
-
ICE scraps age limits amid hiring push
Speed Read Anyone 18 or older can now apply to be an ICE agent
-
Trump's global tariffs take effect, with new additions
Speed Read Tariffs on more than 90 US trading partners went into effect, escalating the global trade war
-
House committee subpoenas Epstein files
Speed Read The House Oversight Committee has issued a subpoena to the Justice Department for its Jeffrey Epstein files with an Aug. 19 deadline
-
India rejects Trump threat over Russian oil
Speed Read The president said he would raise tariffs on India for buying and selling Russian oil
-
NY's Hochul vows response to Texas gerrymander
Speed Read Gov. Kathy Hochul has promised to play ball with redistricting that favors the Democrats
-
Redistricting: How the GOP could win in 2026
Feature Trump pushes early redistricting in Texas to help Republicans keep control of the House in next year's elections
-
Tariffs: Is Trump winning his trade war?
Feature Trump secures a new trade deal as Europe agrees to 15% tariffs
-
Texas Democrats exit state to block redistricting vote
Speed Read More than 51 legislators fled the state in protest of the GOP's plan to redraw congressional districts