Greek conservative leader eyes snap elections

New Democracy would not support a coalition with SYRIZA in the event of a hung parliament, conservative leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis has said, adding that a snap election would be a “good development” for Greece.

“I would never enter a coalition with Tsipras because we are separated by abyss,” Mitsotakis told the Deutsche Welle’s Greek program Friday adding that if Greece were ruled by a SYRIZA-ND coalition then the neofascist Golden Dawn would be the main opposition party. 

“I do not know if elections will be held in Greece in autumn or spring. Whenever they take place, this will be a positive, not a negative development for Greece,” Mitsotakis said.

“The cost of an election campaign would be smaller than the benefit for Greece,” he said.

Polls show the conservatives leading the ruling SYRIZA party by as many as 11.5 percentage points.