SYRIZA leader Kasselakis eyes broader center-left leadership

SYRIZA leader Stefanos Kasselakis told his party’s parliamentary group on Thursday that he will be a candidate for leadership in the event that a broader body of the center-left is created via a consensus of democratic forces.

Striking a defiant note against the backdrop of the leadership challenges riveting socialist PASOK in a speech to his party’s parliamentary group on Thursday, Kasselakis stressed that “there is no scenario for me to leave so that a deus ex machina can come.”

Kasselakis called on PASOK and SYRIZA splinter Plefsi Eleftherias (Course for Freedom) to team up with SYRIZA in parliament, saying that if a left-wing coalition of multiple parties were to emerge, he would not stand against it but he would pursue the role of leader.

“I will run for the leadership,” said Kasselakis, adding that he believes the leaders should always be elected by a party’s supporters. Kasselakis also denied that he would resign as SYRIZA leader, stating that “there is no such scenario.”

He went on to lash out at ruling New Democracy and Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, saying they suffered an “unprecedented decline” just a year after last summer’s national elections.

“Society has already decided: The vote of the Greek people on Sunday made me the opponent of New Democracy and its philosophy. New Democracy itself singled me out as its opponent. And showed that it is afraid of SYRIZA. So let’s build the modern party of the future,” he said.

Kasselakis called on the European socialists to “not bow to the handouts of the European People’s Party and clearly state that they will vote against Ursula von der Leyen,” whom he described as the worst president the European Commission has had. 

SYRIZA came in second place in the European Parliament elections with a lackluster performance of 14.9%, 13 points behind ruling New Democracy.