Parties’ electoral eligibility to be ruled on by end-May

The Supreme Court is expected to rule by the end of May on the eligibility of political parties contesting the June 9 European Parliament elections, including the far-right Spartiates (Spartans), who are being prosecuted for voter fraud.

The far-right party is accused of deceiving the electorate as to its real leadership.

Ilias Kasidiaris, a jailed former MP with the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party, is said to be providing direct guidance and leadership, in violation of the terms of his 13.5-year sentence, which he got in 2020 as a leading member of a “criminal organization,” as Golden Dawn was found to be.

If the Spartans party is convicted, their 11 MPs will be expelled and their seats proportionately distributed to the other seven parliamentary parties, with ruling New Democracy expanding its majority to 162 or 163 seats in the 300-member assembly.