Back to what we know

This Sunday’s political waltz in the municipal runoff elections in Athens and Thessaloniki will be danced between the ruling conservative New Democracy and socialist PASOK, just like in the good old days.

In Athens the political backgrounds of the candidates are clearer, but in Thessaloniki they are a bit more complicated, as the ticket of Stelios Angeloudis is very PASOK – though not completely – with a good dose of New Democracy. We old-timers who lived through the 1980s felt a sense of relief to see that the good ol’ days were coming back, but to be honest the current climate has nothing to do with the climate of those glorious days, when New Democracy’s attacking trio in 1986 with political heavyweights Andreas Andrianopoulos, Miltiades Evert and Sotiris Kouvelas conquered the bastions of the then-ruling PASOK.

In 1990, former PASOK stalwart Antonis Tritsis defeated actress-turned-minister Melina Mercouri in a duel of giants for the mayorship of Athens with the support of New Democracy and a few years later New Democracy’s Dimitris Avramopoulos defeated PASOK’s Theodoros Pangalos. In Thessaloniki, the gladiators were always well-known personalities of the city, good people, approachable and eloquent, but they played in a smaller league than their peers in Athens. The current situation, as it is reflected in the two largest municipalities of the country, I hope points to a return to normality – that is, a return of the two traditional parties, New Democracy and PASOK, who will once again take the lead in central politics.

At any rate, it appears that the sad exception of leftist SYRIZA has closed, and together with it the unhealthy climate cultivated by its former leader and his team. On Wednesday, Athens Mayor Kostas Bakoyannis (supported by the conservatives) and Haris Doukas (supported by the socialists) conducted, by general admission, a civilized debate, without extreme statements and tensions.

The current situation, as it is reflected in the two largest municipalities of the country, points to a return to normality – that is, a return of the two traditional parties

As one commentator wrote, the two could even be in the same party, at least in terms of the style and decorum of their speech. Could a televised debate of a similar level be held between Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and former SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras? No sane citizen would answer positively, and I’m guessing the vast majority of readers also know who would be the one to blame for that.

After the menace of SYRIZA, what is important is the mildness of the political discourse. The actual policies come second. You might of course say that most of the time, these two things go together. Extreme and groundless political plans and proposals are accompanied by extreme and divisive speech. I would agree, although the other day Doukas proved that groundless plans can be presented in a decent and civilized manner. I may have disagreed with his positions on surveillance cameras in public spaces and self-managed neighborhoods, but I wasn’t outraged, I wasn’t angry, because the man was kind and gentle.

He didn’t raise his voice, he didn’t misbehave at any point in the debate. If you remember the speeches of the former prime minister you will agree with me. With Tsipras you disagreed even on the rare occasions when he was right.

This is why the political waltz must be danced from here on out by the two old, experienced dancers – New Democracy and PASOK.