Speculation mounts over new SYRIZA leader following Tsipras’ resignation

Following Alexis Tsipras’ resignation as the leader of the leftist opposition party SYRIZA, speculation has intensified about his successor. The 48-year-old’s decision came in the aftermath of the party’s heavy defeat in the May 21 and June 25 elections

One prominent contender for the leadership position is Efi Achtsioglou. The 38-year-old won the majority of votes in the party’s central committee elections in 2022. She served as the labor minister from 2016 to 2019 and as the shadow economy minister in the previous parliamentary term.

Euclid Tsakalotos, a seasoned figure within SYRIZA, also stands as a strong candidate. With considerable political experience and international recognition as an academic, he was seen as instrumental in steering Greece out of the bailout era in 2018. However, according to some sources, Tsakalotos was considering a candidacy if Tsipras chose to run, not necessarily as a direct competitor, but to offer an alternative perspective within the party.

Alexis Haritsis, aged 46, has experienced a remarkable rise within SYRIZA and is seen as another viable option. His past roles include secretary general for Public Investments – ESPA in 2015, followed by being an alternate minister of economy and development and later the deputy minister of economy, development, and tourism.

Rena Dourou, a SYRIZA MP representing Athens’ second constituency, is also being touted as a potential candidate. She was the regional governor of Attica while winning nearly 800,000 votes in 2014.

Nasos Iliopoulos, who, at just under 40 years old, boasts a successful span at the head of the independent labor inspection authority SEPE and later as the deputy minister of labor, is among the likely successors to Tsipras. He won the most votes for SYRIZA in Athens’ first constituency during the recent elections.

Gabriel Sakellaridis, a 43-year-old economist who narrowly missed winning the race for Athens Mayor in 2014, has reappeared in the political scene after years of absence. His criticism of certain party choices in recent years has earned him consideration as a potential force for rejuvenation within SYRIZA.

Additionally, 42-year-old labor expert Dionysis Temboneras, who gained attention as the coordinator of the party’s electoral committee, presents an outsider option within the party leadership race. His background as the son of a late school teacher and unionist, Nikos Temboneras, who was killed during a student demonstration in 1991, adds a unique dimension to his candidacy. However, it’s worth noting that he is not an elected MP, which means that the party would have to have a dual leadership for the next four years.

Some reports have suggested that the former alternate minister of health, Pavlos Polakis, might enter the fray as a candidate.

The conservative New Democracy party secured a second term with an absolute elections in the June 25 elections, obtaining 40.5 percent of the vote and 158 out of 300 available seats, while SYRIZA trailed far behind with only 17.8 percent of the vote and 47 seats.

[Combined reports]