Herculean task

Greece has entered an election period with voting scheduled for May 21. As of now all opinion polls agree; the conservative New Democracy party will finish first followed by leftist SYRIZA and then center-left PASOK. In any case, governing ND will not be able to form a government and a second round of voting will be needed. Even then, the possibility of one party forming a government appears doubtful.

The above scenario is creating anxiety and speculation. How long can the country go without a stable government? Will PASOK join ND? Will ND agree to a coalition? Will there be a government of the “defeated”? (SYRIZA and PASOK finishing second and third combine to govern?)

There is a tradition in many European countries of coalition governments, but in Greece such governments have not been a success. Thus, the prospect of PASOK agreeing to join either ND or SYRIZA appears to be a nonstarter. As a historian I understand historical precedent and the impact it has on the present, but I am not a fatalist. Just because “things have always been that way” does not mean that humans are powerless. Maybe it’s time for the Greeks to face reality and act accordingly.

It appears that the day when a political party received 45% of the vote, or more, is gone. It also appears that neither the proportional representation system nor the re-enforced one will produce a one-party government. Here is a test of the maturity of Greek democracy and the Greek voters; are we ready for political parties willing to put their differences aside and govern together for the good of the country? Is PASOK willing to accept its place as the third party and give up its demand of having as PM a person other than the leader of the first party? Is ND mature enough to drop its demand that it forms a government alone? Is SYRIZA ready to accept the fact that other parties represent the will of the people as well?

Just because ‘things have always been that way’ does not mean that humans are powerless

While Greece is doing better than it has in a while there are still serious problems on the horizon; Turkey will not drop its demands on the Aegean and the Greek national debt is increasing; such issues demand immediate attention by a strong, long-term government. Will SYRIZA be happy for a ND, or ND/PASOK government to fail only to succeed them in governance and face even greater problems? Is ND willing to let SYRIZA or SYRIZA/PASOK flounder and inherit a crisis? Maybe the solution is not just a coalition but a grand coalition of the type common in Germany. A ND/SYRIZA government with overwhelming support in Parliament able to do what is right and share the credit or blame. Who knows, maybe this is the time of a coalition of all the “systemic parties;” a ND/SYRIZA/PASOK government will be able to do what one of them cannot do alone.

I realize this is a long shot; it will require two or three parties to compromise some important principles: Agree to a plan ahead of time, and stick to it for four years. This is a task of Herculean proportions for Greece. Most people will opine that it is impossible because Greece and the Greeks cannot change. That might be true but while we are standing still the whole world around us is moving forward. As the famous singer-songwriter, and Nobel Prize winner, of my home state of Minnesota, Bob Dylan said, “The times they are a-changing.”

John Mazis is professor of history at Hamline University in Saint Paul, Minnesota.