The day after and the alienation of conservative voters

The successful passage of the bill legalizing same-sex marriage brought relief to the government as the measure had created internal divisions and has left scars in New Democracy with one third of the party’s deputies not voting for the law in Parliament.

In an effort to quickly turn the page, the government will now move to other battles that carry their own challenges but are not as divisive for the ruling party.

There is controversy and different approaches on some of the issues coming next, most prominent among which is the higher education bill allowing for the establishment of private universities, although the opposition here comes mainly from other parties.

Still, a significant part of society, including the rectors of the existing public universities, is either not convinced about the merits of having private universities or expresses doubts about their quality. The rectors have asked for “a comprehensive institutional framework” and guarantees that the overall quality of education will be enhanced.

Another issue that is already at the forefront is the protests by the farmers across Greece who are faced with steady rampant inflation and are demanding, among other things, lower costs for fuel and electricity as well as for the agricultural material they use.

As the campaign for the June European elections is moving into full gear, the political landscape is volatile.

But the pressure on the government this time comes not so much from the center-left, which remains divided into at least three parties – SYRIZA, PASOK and New Left – but from the right.

A number of developments, mainly same-sex marriage, has alienated the most conservative part of New Democracy’s supporters, with a significant number of them eyeing and potentially voting for one of the three parties of the far right; the religion-based Niki (Victory), the nationalist Greek Solution and the Spartiates (Spartans), who are for the most part remnants of Golden Dawn.

In an effort to deal with this “threat,” during the next few months the government will try to appeal to the more conservative segments of society by promoting law and order and measures in support of families.