Mitsotakis: New president a symbol of national unity
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis hailed the election of Katerina Sakellaropoulou as Greece’s new president on Wednesday saying that the figure, a former top judge, symbolized “the country's transition to a new era.”
Speaking to journalists after the Parliament vote, Mitsotakis said the election of the 63-year-old as the country's first female head of state, “symbolizes the unity of the Greek nation.”
“It showed that Greeks can reach consensus on major issues,” the premier said, adding he was confident the two can “cooperate effectively” in the future.
Speaking to Sto Kokkino FM, SYRIZA spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos said that Sakellaropoulou was a “special” figure as she stands for “democracy, the expansion of individual rights, many of the things that SYRIZA has been fighting for.”
Sakellaropoulou secured 261 votes thanks to support from most mainstream parties. A minimum 200 votes was required.
She will take over from Prokopis Pavlopoulos, whose five-year term ends in March.
The outgoing president telephoned Sakellaropoulou to congratulate her on her election.
This is a developing story.
