Divided SYRIZA seeks new leader to heal the party
The main opposition left-wing SYRIZA party is on a quest for a new leader who will be able to beat Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, its officials say.
But with the party having suffered two devastating defeats in a row – Mitsotakis’ New Democracy party defeated SYRIZA 40.56% to 17.83% on June 25 – many in the party are still in a state of shock, both from the magnitude of the defeat and the fact that Alexis Tsipras, the party leader of 15 years, resigned.
Wings of the party show signs of splitting up, so the moderates/radicals division is no longer clear-cut. Former labor minister Efi Achtsioglou, 38, usually thought of as on the left, appears ready to ditch the label and challenge another left-winger, former finance minister Euclid Tsakalotos, 63, for the leadership.
A timeline for the election of a new leader is expected to be decided by mid-July amid deep divisions over it.
