Polling stations open until 7 p.m., candidates issue statements

Candidates for the municipal and regional elections made their way to the polling stations from the early hours of Sunday. Polling stations will be open until 7 p.m. and the first results are expected at 10.30 p.m. on Sunday.

Regional Governor candidates for Attica made statements to the press after casting their votes.

Candidate for Regional Governor of Attica Nikos Hardalias was one of the first to cast their vote shortly after 8.30 a.m. “Today we are voting for our lives in Attica, we are voting for our lives in all 66 Municipalities. We are voting for everyday life, we are voting for the safety of the residents,” he stated. 

The candidate for Regional Governor of Attica Yiannis Sgouros also voted before 10 a.m. on Sunday, with a slight delay as there was no electoral committee in the polling station. “Citizens should send a strong message that they are not taken for granted. The government takes them for granted. They must send a reaction message. They should vote for their country and not for their party,” noted Sgouros.

Sgouros later announced that his faction’s ballot was missing from the package of ballots he was given at the polling station. The same thing happened in the 2170th polling station. “We hope that the incidents are isolated so that there is no problem with the smooth conduct of the Regional and Municipal Elections” noted in the faction’s announcement.

Regional governor of Attica candidate Giorgos Ioakeimidis exercised his right to vote in western Attica. “Next Sunday we will be here again. We are here to win for the Region, for Attica, for our cities,” said Ioakeimidis.

Candidates for the Municipality of Athens also made statements after exercising their right to vote.

Candidate for the Municipality of Athens, Kostas Zachariadis, also cast his vote early on Sunday. “The Athens challenge is in your hands. It is a day of celebration, of democracy, of participation,” said Zachariadis, candidate with SYRIZA. “Use the power you have, vote for the city you want,” he highlighted. It is noted that in the center where Zachariadis exercised his right, there was no electoral committee.

Nikos Sofianos, mayoral candidate for Athens, voted at the 129th Primary School of Athens. “I invite the Athenians to vote so that we can create momentum and change things in the Municipality. Together, let’s fight for the interests of the many,” he underlined.

Kostas Bakoyannis hopes to be re-elected as the mayor of Athens. “All together we can take Athens further and higher,” said Bakoyannis after exercising his right to vote at the 1st Experimental High School of Athens.

Candidates from other regions of Greece also made statements to the press.

The candidate for mayor of Thessaloniki Stelios Angeloudis exercised his right to vote. Today “is a great day,” he declared. “Sunny and optimistic,” added. “We decide on the future of our city. The citizens have the first and the last word,” he continued.