Survey shows Greeks see silver lining
An increasing number of Greeks consider the country is on the right track toward exiting its economic crisis, with more than half regarding a default as impossible, according to an opinion poll conducted by Public Issue for Skai and Kathimerini.
In the survey, conducted between December 6 and 10, 19 percent of respondents said they believed the country was on the right track, compared to 75 percent who felt the opposite was true. Last June, the percentages stood at 5 and 88 percent respectively. Fourteen percent of respondents in December’s poll said Greece’s position was stronger internationally while 56 percent considered a Greek default impossible.
The poll indicated that left-wing opposition SYRIZA is gaining influence, with 60 percent believing it would win in snap elections compared to 25 percent who saw New Democracy coming out on top. According to the survey, SYRIZA would get 30.5 percent in polls followed by ND (26 percent), far-right Golden Dawn (10.5 percent), Independent Greeks (9 percent), Socialist PASOK (8 percent), Democratic Left (6.5 percent) and the Greek Communist Party, KKE (5.5 percent.
The majority of those asked — 65 percent — thought that new elections were not necessary, compared to 31 percent who believed they were.
Similarly to a Public Issue poll published last month, not a single politician went over the 50 percent mark in terms of popularity: Democratic Left’s chief Fotis Kouvelis earned 49 percent, followed by SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras (44 percent), Prime Minister and New Democracy chief Antonis Samaras (40 percent) and Independent Greek’s Panos Kammenos (40 percent).
Samaras was being favored as Prime Minister by 40 percent of those asked, compared to 29 percent who favored Tsipras.
