House to hold first vote on new president on January 22

The Greek government on Thursday brought forward the voting procedure on the election of the new President of the Republic to January 22, that initially expected to begin at the end of January or the start of February, after the House had approved the changes to the electoral law.

Lawmakers will be called to vote on the candidacy of Katerina Sakellaropoulou, the outgoing president of the Council of State, announced by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in a televised address on Wednesday night.

Based on revisions made to Article 32 of the Greek Constitution earlier this year, 200 votes are required to elect the new president. The ruling Conservatives hold 158 seats in the House and will require the support of lawmakers from opposition parties to approve Sakellaropoulou for the post.

Opposition parties had mixed or muted reactions to the announcement, but the only clear rejection has come from the Communist Party (15 MPs).

If her election is not achieved in the first round, a second vote will be held after five days, which also requires a minimum of 200 positive votes. If a majority is still not secured, a third vote will he held, lowering the threshold to 180.