New Democracy without the specter of SYRIZA
Now that there is no longer the specter of a return of leftist SYRIZA and its former leader Alexis Tsipras to power, ruling New Democracy could easily fall back to being its “good old” self. It is a party with a long tradition of interparty backstabbing and clashes between its prominent members. Oftentimes, it is only the first names of the main protagonists of such clashes that change.
The experience of SYRIZA forced ND to remain united. Even those who grumbled a lot admitted that at the end of the day, “there is one red line that we will not cross, so that we don’t bring them back to power.”
Today, ND is a rare case in Europe. It is a historical party of power that received very high percentages in the last national elections and ensured an absolute majority. How did it do that? It stole voters both from the center and the right of the political spectrum, just as Kostas Karamanlis had done very successfully with the centrist vote in 2004.
The question is whether the government of New Democracy will be able to govern without a hitch for the next three years and whether it will be able to maintain its high percentages in the next elections as well. A political clash due to internal fighting would be in keeping with our history but would be completely unnecessary. It would be almost suicidal for the economy, the investment climate and political stability since there is no mature alternative for government.
There have certainly been governmental and prime-ministerial mistakes in recent years that could have been avoided, and more effort could have been put into achieving consensus within the party, while there were attitudes and arrogance that angered the public.
But if we go to the crux of the matter, the question is simple: Which ND can achieve an absolute majority again and be a big party with a huge distance from the second? An ideologically pure ND or the ND that addresses the center without ever forgetting, and most importantly snubbing, its right wing? “Purebred” solutions have historically led to a shrinkage of the party. Society is changing and the modern ND voter is much more open to new trends and ideas. The experience with the anti-bailout wave also showed that angry citizens who dream of a return to the past can distinguish between the fake protest party and the authentic. And they usually prefer the authentic.
We need to remain focused. People are under unbearable pressure and demand solutions to everyday, serious problems. They demand that the politicians listen, not to be involved in self-referential conflicts that leave them rather indifferent.
