The New Democracy party could move early to stop the newly-created Elas party of former left-wing PM Alexis Tsipras from building momentum.

ATHENS — Senior Greek officials in the scandal-hit ruling party of conservative Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis are discussing whether to call an early election in the fall rather than waiting until next year.

Support for Mitsotakis’ ruling New Democracy has fallen sharply since the last general election in 2023 amid surging inflation, revelations about high-level fraud with EU funds, and the government’s botched response to the country’s worst rail disaster.

While New Democracy still leads in the polls, the key calculation for its top brass is whether to call a vote before the fragmented opposition can unite and build momentum against Mitsotakis.

POLITICO’s Poll of Polls puts New Democracy on 30 percent, almost twice the backing of its nearest rival. The newly created Elas party of former left-wing Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is in second place on 16 percent.

For now, Mitsotakis is insisting that he will see out his full term into 2027. Speaking on the island of Rhodes over the weekend, he said “elections will be held in spring of 2027, as scheduled.”

Inside his party, though, four senior politicians told POLITICO that discussions were ongoing about shooting for a vote in late September or October.

SOURCE: POLITICO