Ruling New Democracy dominates the center – with some scars
Six months after the national elections and another six months before the European Parliament elections, the ruling New Democracy (ND) party continues to dominate the precious political center, but with some scars.
A poll conducted by Prorata on the voters occupying the political center and their preferences in Greece showed that in the June elections some 58% of them voted for ND.
When asked which party they would vote for if parliamentary elections were held tomorrow, support for ND among the centrists dropped to 41%, meaning that the ruling party has lost a 17% share of the contested political space.
Socialist PASOK was shown to have scored some gains, as it was preferred by around 17% of centrists (compared to 11% in the June elections), while support for SYRIZA rose from 7% in June to 9% today. Some 10% said they remain undecided.
June’s election results confirmed ND’s undisputed political hegemony. The ruling party managed not only to win the political center, but also to expand its influence in the center left.
The 50th anniversary of the post-dictatorship era, known here in Greece as the Metapolitefsi, coincides with the first time that the space to the left of the “center” is weaker in parliament than the space on the right of the political spectrum, and much weaker electorally as fresh polls show.
According to pollsters, some 20% of Greeks are centrist voters. Of those, 65%, a critical part, say they don’t identify themselves in partisan terms and are open to changing their voting preferences.
Profile of centrist voters
The Prorata survey found that voters identifying themselves as centrist are closer to New Democracy.
Inequality is part of human nature and cannot be completely eliminated, declared some 75% of the centrists, compared to 59% of the general population, indicating that Greece’s centrists support liberal economic policies.
Nevertheless, around 60% of them said that the state doesn’t intervene enough in the economy.
Regarding the hot topic that has been dominating the domestic political agenda, some 66% of the centrist voters were found to agree with the right of same-sex couples to marry, but 58% disagreed with their right to adopt children.
In terms of political identity, 59% of New Democracy voters, 94% of SYRIZA voters and 75% of PASOK voters agree with marriage equality. Only 20% of New Democracy and 30% of PASOK voters said they agree with granting adoption rights to gay couples, with support rising at 72% among SYRIZA voters.
More surprisingly, some 15% of the voters who identify themselves as centrists said abortion should be banned, while some 29% of the centrists (and 41% of the general population) said that the death penalty should be reinstated.
On the other hand, some eight out of ten of the centrist voters (and 75% in the general population) consider the state should break ties with the powerful Orthodox church, moving ahead with the separation of church and state, even though 51% of them say they are faithful.
