SYRIZA image ‘not good’ after congress
After four days of intense behind-the-scenes activity at the SYRIZA congress, turmoil and a charged atmosphere that went far beyond political boundaries, the polarizing tendencies within the party remain. In spite of claims of the opposite by party officials close to the leadership, the aftertaste of the congress was more on the sour side as the image of the party appeared tarnished.
“The image of the congress was not good, that’s the reality,” senior SYRIZA official Giorgos Tsipras admitted, speaking to Skai TV.
Party leader Stefanos Kasselakis will no doubt attempt to reverse this climate as Kathimerini understands he is preparing to make immediate changes concerning “key” political positions. This will most likely include the activation of the Executive Bureau, which has only met a few times. Despite his refusals to activate it, there is now a political decision of the congress that binds him. The aim of this bureau is to determine the party’s stance on current affairs on a daily basis. Kasselakis may have won the battle of applause at the congress, but he is well aware that if the result of the European elections is not the desired one and the political map changes, with SYRIZA moving into third place, he will be challenged again.
The “restart” will not be easy, as he now faces a coherent opposition spearheaded by Olga Gerovasili, the deputy parliament speaker. However, Gerovasili, and by extension former party leader Alexis Tsipras, did not manage to unite the old guard. Nikos Pappas, Sokratis Famellos and Giorgos Tsipras went their own way and came out on top at the congress with their proposal to postpone the elections, which was approved.
What was also clear was that things have changed compared to the past. Alexis Tsipras was clearly out of control and his appeal to the grassroots quickly fell by the wayside. In a nutshell, he no longer has the political capital he once deployed so effectively.
