POLITICAL SYSTEM AND ELECTIONS IN GREECE

Transcription

1 POLITICAL SYSTEM AND ELECTIONS IN GREECE by Christos Lyrintzis- Elias Nikolakopoulos Professors, University of Athens The Third Republic The restoration of democracy in July 1974 signalled a turning point in Modern Greek political history. The military regime that had ruled the country since 1967 collapsed in the midst of an international crisis caused by the dictatorship s own policy over Cyprus. A transitional period began with the formation of a national unity government under Constantine Karamanlis who had played a prominent role as Prime Minister during the late fifties and early sixties. Three major decisions were taken by the national unity government: First, to organise free parliamentary elections for the election of a constitutional assembly; second, to organise a referendum on the question of the monarchy and third, to legalise the Communist party(kke), which had been illegal since its formation. about GREECE 87

2 GOVERNMENT and POLITICS Constantine Karamanlis, Prime Minister , President of the Hellenic Republic , Parliamentary elections were held in November 1974 with the participation of four major political parties. The right wing of the political spectrum was represented by the newly formed New Democracy party(nd) founded by Karamanlis in September The political Centrewasoccupiedbytherevivalof the old centre (i.e. the Centre Union party) under the new label Centre Union-New Forces(EKND). The traditional left was represented by an alliance under the label United Left (E. A.). It was an alliance comprising the Communist party (KKE), the KKE Esoterikou - which emerged after a split in 1968thatledtotheformationof the Euro-communist left under the label KKE esoterikou(interior)- and theremnantsoftheoldedaparty (that is the party which represented the Greek Left before 1967 when the KKE was illegal). The fourth group to contest the 1974 election was an entirely new party, the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK), founded by Andreas Papandreou, son of George Papandreou, the ex prime minister ( ) and prominent politician ofthecentreandleaderofthecentre Union party during the period. The November 1974 election gave aneasyvictoryto N.D.partywhich received54.4percentofthevote and an overwhelming majority of theseatsinparliament(216outof 300). The Centre Union was confined to 20.4 per cent and 61 seats, a percentage that seriously weakenedtheroleofthemainopposition party. PASOK received 13.6 per cent of the vote and 15 seats. Finally, the communist left received9.5percentand8seats. In December 1974 a referendum resulted in a decisive vote against the monarchy(69.2 per cent opted for a Presidential Republic) thus ending a constitutional question 88 about GREECE

3 POLITICAL SYSTEM AND ELECTIONS IN GREECE that had caused significant problems since The parliamentary assembly drafted a new constitution providing for a President elected by parliament. The President was to have important prerogatives although the presidency was not designed according to the French model but it was closer to its Italian or German counterpart. In June 1975 Constantine Tsatsos a prominent member of the old political class and a close collaborator of Constantine Karamanlis was elected by parliament as President of the Republic for a five year term. According to the 1975 Constitution the political system is a parliamentary democracy with the Prime Ministerandthecabinetatthetop of the executive. Following the lines of the Westminster model, the government needs a majority in the three hundred-seat parliament. Elections take place every fouryearsandtheleaderofthepolitical party that enjoys a majority in parliament forms a government whichmustreceiveavoteofconfidence.forthefirsttimeingreek politics special provision was made in the Constitution for the role of the political parties, their free functioning and their financing by the state. Constantine Tsatsos, President of the Hellenic Republic The third Greek Republic was born and Karamanlis handled the transition to democracy with remarkable calm and determination and there can be little doubt that political developments during the seventiesbearhisseal.thenewpoliticalsystemwasbasedonaninstitutional setting that could guarantee stable government, mainly through the alteration of two parties in power, while the presidency was designed as a safety valve controlling long-term political developments. The November 1977 elections, held one year earlier than scheduled, redressed the balance of power between the major political parties. The N.D. retained its parliamentary majority with 171 seats butitsshareofthevotedecreased from 54.4% to 41.8%. The party s decline was partly due to the emergence of an extreme right wing party (Ethniki Parataxis-National Front) which attracted a partofitselectorate(6.3%ofthe totalvoteand5seats).thecentre, that is the Union of Democratic Forces-EDIK party(a new label for the Centre Union-New Forces party),collapsedto12percentofthe vote and 16 seats, a performance that marked the beginning of the endforthegreekcentre.themain beneficiary of the election was about GREECE 89

4 GOVERNMENT and POLITICS George Rallis, Prime Minister PASOK which doubled its vote and became the second largest party in parliament, with 25.3 per centofthevotehad93mps,most of them newcomers in Greek politics.thekkeandthekkeinterior contested the election independentlyanditwasthekkewith9.4 percentand11seatsthatemerged as the dominant group, whereas the KKE interior, in alliance with fourminorpartiesofthegreekcenter-left, received only 2.7 per cent and 2 seats in parliament. There can be little doubt, however, that it was PASOK and its leader Andreas Papandreou that emerged as the rising political force. The period was marked by the gradual fragmentation and the eventual disintegration of the Centre (EDIK).Atthesametime,theN.D. party gradually absorbed the most important part of the National Front, whileatthesametimethepartyexpanded towards the Centre by incorporating prominent politicians of EDIKand other Centre parties(among the latter Constantine Mitsotakis who wasto become leader ofthe party and prime minister). Thus, by 1981 the Greekparty system had acquired a tripartite configuration that was to last throughout the eighties. The late seventies were marked by Greece s re-entry in NATO s military armandbythesigninginmay1979 of the treaty confirming Greece s accession to the EEC. In fact, integrationintotheeuropeanunionwasa major objective of Karamanlis' policiesaswellasastrategicmovement defining the overall orientation of the country s foreign policy. Moreover, it was a decision guaranteeing the country s new democratic institutions, and at the same time advancing its defence position in view of Greece s tense relations with Turkey. Thus, Greece became the tenth member ofthe European Union although the terms of the agreement were under heavy attackby both PA- SOK and the KKE. Karamanlis decided to abandon parliamentary politics andtoseekelectionaspresidentof the Republic. Indeed, in April 1980 hewaselectedaspresidentofthe Republic. His successor to the leadershipofthen.d.party,thoughan experienced politician(george Rallis), was not a statesman of Karamanlis' calibre. This fact further weakened the party s position vis-avis the rising PASOK. GREECE IN THE EIGHTIES During the period between 1977 and1981,pasokmanagedtoestablishitselfasarisingandconvincing new political force. The party capitalised on the ability andcharismaofitsleaderandoffered the Greek electorate a radical programme which during its first years characterised PASOK as a left-wing party. As the 1981 elections approached, PASOK culti- 90 about GREECE

5 POLITICAL SYSTEM AND ELECTIONS IN GREECE vatedtheimageofamoderateand pragmatic party thus establishing a centre-left political identity. The October 1991 elections corroboratedthetrendsthatwerealreadyvisible in PASOK s victory was accompanied by the confirmation of the tripartite structure of the Greek party system. PASOK received 48.1 per cent of the vote winning 172 seats in parliament, while N.D saw its share of the vote decrease to 35.9 per cent and only 115 seats. The centre parties were devastated and won no parliamentary representation, whereas the KKE slightly increased itspower(10.9%ofthevoteand13 seats). The new three-bloc configuration would last until the early nineties. It is important to note that thisisthemaincleavageingreek political life and all political antagonisms refer to it. This division goesbackto the firstdecadesof the century. The monarchy and the People s party were in acute conflict with the Centre, which was led by Eleftherios Venizelos. The left has always been identified with the Communist party (KKE). PASOK srisetopowerwasasignificant event for the relatively young Third Republic. It demonstrated that the new political system could survive the crucial test, that is the alteration in power. The change was remarkably smooth and the presence of two strong political parties was a guarantee for the functioning of democratic institutions. Moreover, PASOK s presence in office proved very important at the symbolic level, as it signified the vindication of the left after decades of almost uninterrupted right wing rule and at the same time the definitive heeling of the Andreas Papandreou, Prime Minister , scarsofthecivilwar. PASOK and Andreas Papandreou dominated the political scene during the eighties. Irrespective of the mannerinwhichonemayassess PASOK s performance, there can be little doubt that the PASOK government introduced several changes, especially in the field of social policy and public administration. In the foreign policy affairs, PASOK soon abandoned its anti-eec and anti- NATO stance and followed a moderate and realistic policy. The party s options and policies had the approval of the electorate, which was reconfirmed in the June 1985 elections. The pre-electoral campaign was marked by PASOK s decision nottosupportkaramanlisforasecondtermaspresidentoftherepublic. Instead, PASOK nominated its own candidate, Christos Sartzetakis, a prominent judge, who was eventually elected President with thehelpofthevotesofthecommunistmps.itwasthefirsttimethat the communist votes were used to obtain a major decision in the Greek parliament. The new Parlia- about GREECE 91

6 GOVERNMENT and POLITICS signalled the first post war entry of a communist party in government. Costantine Mitsotakis, Prime Minister ment abolished the few prerogativesofthepresident-namelythe right to dissolve parliament. PASOK maintained its electoral majority with45.8percentofthevoteand 161seats.TheN.D.party,underthe new leadership of Constantine Mitsotakis increased its share of the voteto40.8percentand126seats in parliament while the KKE s strength slightly decreased(9.9% and 12 seats). The June 1989 election confirmed thedeclineofpasokandtherise ofthen.d.party.however,itwas not an electoral disaster as many had anticipated: PASOK received 39.1percentofthevoteand125 seats thus maintaining the core of its electorate. N.D. received 44.3 percentofthevoteand145seats; yet,duetothenewelectoralsystemnopartyhadanabsolutemajority of the seats in parliament. The alliance between N.D. and Synaspismos, - that is the alliance of the left comprising the KKEandtheKKEinterior-wasunexpected and formally marked the end of the long conflict between left and right in Greek politics. Moreover, this unorthodox alliance Costantine Mitsotakis, the leader of the N.D. party, withdrew his support from the coalition and thus new elections were held in November PASOK, although still on the defensive, slightly increaseditsshareofthevote(40.7 per cent compared to 39.1 per centinjune).n.dgaineda1.9per centincreaseinitsvoteandthree additional parliamentary seats, butdidnotmanagetoachieveits goal of an independent parliamentary majority. In contrast, N.D. s coalition partner, the Synaspismos, suffered a considerable setback losing over 2 per centofitsvoteandaquarterofits parliamentary seats. It is interestingtonotethatinjunesynaspismos had achieved the highest percentagefortheleftinapostdictatorship election, whereas in November it was the lowest apart from Obviously, the co-operationwiththerightwasnotacceptabletoaconsiderablepartofthe Synaspismos voters as many of them had strong memories of the post war persecution and of the anti-communist policies during the fifties. Thus, the Synaspismos wasthemainifnottheonlyloser in the November 1989 elections. The November 1989 elections did not produce a parliamentary majority and consequently a new coalition government was needed. After protracted negotiations, the three major parties agreed to participate in an ecoumeniki that is an all-party government under Xenophon Zolotas, the respected ex-governor of the Bank of Greece. Themaintaskofthis grandcoali- 92 about GREECE

7 POLITICAL SYSTEM AND ELECTIONS IN GREECE tion was to stabilise the economy. Indeed, the Zolotas cabinet tried to promote a consensual approach to economic and other problems, a task that proved very difficult as it was often impossible for the three partners to agree on major issues. Hence the failure to pass important legislation on crucial subjects as tax evasion and pollution. The initial idea behind this all-party government was to last until April 1990, when parliament was due to electanewpresidentoftherepublic. In fact the parliament failed to obtain the necessary majority for the election of the President(180 votes) and consequently it was dissolved and new elections were scheduled for April The Greekelectoratehadtovoteforthe thirdtimeinlessthanayearand itwashopedthatthistimeaparliamentary majority would emerge. The April 1990 elections, therefore, were again dominated by the same dilemma as the previous one: single party government or coalition rule.n.d.achievedaslightrisein support, which gave her a marginal majority in parliament. (46.9 per cent of the vote and 150 seats, which became 151 after the inclusionoftheonede.ana.mptothe party s parliamentary group) PA- SOK s power slightly decreased compared to November 1989, while the Synaspismos maintained almostthesamepercentageasinthe previous election (10.6% and 21 seats).thefirsttaskofthenewparliament wasto electanew President of the Republic: Following the N.D. s proposal, Constantine Karamanlis was elected for the second time President of the Republic. The 1989/90 elections registered the emergence of two new political forces. The Ecology-Alternatives party, following the model of the German Greens, managed to win one seat in both the November and April election. The Ecologists, however, did not manage to acquire strong roots in Greek party politics and in the next election they would lose their parliamentary representation.(the change of the electoral law in November 1990playedacrucialroleinthis failure). Equally important was the presence of independent Muslim candidates in Western Thrace. The Muslim minority had been formerly represented by Muslim MPs belonging to the two major parties. Last but not least, the 1989/90 elections showed that the Greek political system was unable and/or ill prepared to adopt coalition government. Greek political culture is dominated by the antagonism between left and right and the related conflict between the two major parties. Consequently, it is very difficult to restructure the political system and certainly the simple change of the electoral law was not a sufficient condition to create substantial change. Nevertheless, the experience of the 1989/90 period eventually did reduce the level of fanaticism and polarization. THE NEW CONTEXT IN THE NINETIES The New Democracy government under Constantine Mitsotakis tried to implement a moderate neo-liberal programme whose major objective was to stabilize the ailing economy. The government s plans met considerable reaction on the part of the trade unions, but de- about GREECE 93

8 GOVERNMENT and POLITICS spite the increased number of strikes the government was able to proceed with its policies. The major problememergedinthefieldofforeignaffairsasaresultofthecreationofnewstatesintheareaof the former state of Yugoslavia. The so-called Macedonian issue concerned the official name of the former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia. This question caused a serious split in the government s ranks, with the Foreign Minister Antonis Samaras advocating a hard line.inotherwords,hedidnotacceptthenamemacedoniaorany other label that would include the term Macedonia as the official nameofthenewstate-whilemitsotakis represented a more compromising stance. In April 1992 Mitsotakis accepted the resignationofsamaras,forhewasafraid that the minister's intransigent hard line could cause serious problems to Greece s foreign policy. SamaraslefttheN.D.partyinOctober1992andinJune1993heannounced the creation of a new party the Politiki Anixi - POLAN (Political Spring). In September more MPs defected from N.D. to POLAN and Mitsotakis was finally obliged to call for early elections. The new elections were scheduled to take place in October Samaras presented himself and his party as a new modernizing force seeking to renew Greek politics and fighting against the political establishment, that is against Mitsotakis and Papandreou. The October 1993 elections were conducted under a new electoral law. Given the experience of the 1989/90 period, the new electoral law voted in November 1990, was designed to secure parliamentary majority. Moreover, the new electoral law introduced, for the first time in Greek politics, a 3 per cent threshold; any party failing to receiveatleast3percentofthenationalvotewouldnotbeentitledto any parliamentary representation. There were considerable signs, however, that this time the electorate was frustrated with party fights, while public opinion polls registered disenchantment with the political leaders and rising rates of cynicism and political apathy. The problems of the national economy and the austerity measures taken to stabilize the economic system caused pessimism rather than optimism. Finally, it must be notedthattheleftfoughtthe1993 election divided: In 1991, the KKE abandoned the Synaspismos, leaving the Euro-communist and reformist left to carry on with the Synaspismos. It was not simply a split of Synaspismos but also a split within the KKE as several leading and popular KKE members lefttheirpartyandremainedinthe Synaspismos. Under the influence of the developments in the communist and post-communist world, thekkedecidednotonlytomaintainitsoldlabelbutalsotoinsist onitshardlinepastbypresenting an anti-european image. PASOK won easily the election with46.9percentofthevoteand 170 seats in parliament. The N.D. party was clearly defeated(39.3% ofthevoteand111seats)andthis led to Mitsotakis resignation and the election of Miltiades Evert as the new leader. Samaras party, the Politiki Anixi, received 4.9 per cent of the vote and 10 seats. The Synaspismos failed to obtain more than 3% and thushad no parlia- 94 about GREECE

9 POLITICAL SYSTEM AND ELECTIONS IN GREECE mentary representation, whereas thekkereceived4.5percentand 9 seats in parliament. The electoral result was a vindication for Andreas Papandreou, who, despite his poor health, staged a triumphant return to power. In 1995, oneyearandahalfafterthe1993 election, Karamanlis second term as President of the Republic expired,thusendingalongcareerin Greek politics. Karamanlis had no righttoseekathirdtermandpa- SOK with the help of the Politiki Anixi votes supported the candidacy of Kostis Stefanopoulos, an ex leading member of the N.D. party andleaderuntil1994ofthesmall and relatively unsuccessful DIANA party.(diana was formed by Stefanopoulos in 1985 when he left N.D.).ThusinMarch1995theparliament elected Stefanopoulos as President of the Republic. Konstantinos Stefanopoulos, President of the Hellenic Republic , In the mid nineties Greek politics appearedtobeintheprocessof drastic change. PASOK, after the turbulent years of the period, returned to power in 1993 with a comfortable majority. The new government under Andreas Papandreou embarked on a policy to stabilize the economy and to lead the country towards the targets defined by the Maastricht treaty.itisimportanttonotethat the government s performance signalled the beginning of a drastic change in PASOK s strategy. The partyseemedtoadoptamorerealistic and modernizing attitude. Thepointis,however,thattheeconomic exigencies, and the country s obligations within the context of the European Union dictated a moderate course leading to the stabilization and modernization of Greek economy and society. Significant grants form the European Union contributed to this end, but the whole process was neither easy nor always successful. Even more importantisthe factthatit caused the reaction of various segments of Greek society. Attheendof1995,Papandreouwas tobefoundinhospitalinaverycritical condition. The much-discussed subject of his succession became once again a central issue. Papandreou resigned in January 1996 and PASOK s parliamentary group elected Kostas Simitis as the new Prime Minister. The party proved that it could function without the presence of Papandreou and that itsunitywasnotinseriousdanger. Thus all arguments about the disintegration of PASOK after Papandreou s departure were disproved andthepartybegantofunctionas anopenpoliticalforcewithitsinternal divisions and factional con- about GREECE 95

10 GOVERNMENT and POLITICS Kostas Simitis, Prime Minister , flictsevenmoreevidentthaninthe past. Simitis leadership was reaffirmedinjune1996whenthenational congress of the party elected himaspartypresident.attheend of the summer, Simitis called for early elections. PASOK won the September 1996 elections and Simitis emerged as the indisputable politicalleaderwhoputhismarkon political developments in By contrast, the new defeat caused severe problems within the N.D. party which decided to re-orient its programme and to renew its politicalimage.theendresultofthedebates and deliberations within the party was the election of Constantine Karamanlis, - the young nephewoftheexpresidentofthe republic- as new party leader. The 1996 elections marked the beginning of considerable change in Greek politics. PASOK and ND continue to dominate the political scenebuttheirappealhasbeenseriously undermined. The left of the political spectrum is represented by the Synaspismos which managed toexceedthe3%barrierandtowin 10 seats and by the KKE which maintained its power(5.6% of the vote and 11 seats). A new party emerged in 1996 the Dimokratiko Koinoniko Kinima- DEKKI (Democratic Social Movement), founded by the ex-pasok minister Dimitris Tsovolas. DEKKI received 4.4% of thevoteand9seatsinparliament, appearedasaleftwingpartyand capitalized on the anti-maastricht climate. POLAN received less that 3% and thus no parliamentary representation. Thus, we have two major political forces and three, possibly four, minor parties. What ismoreimportantisthatthe1996 elections registered, perhaps for the first time in Greek politics a growing frustration of the electorate as the percentage of abstentions increasedaswellasthenumberof blank and spoilt ballots. Public opinion surveys conducted before and after the 1996 election confirmedthatamajorchangeingreek political culture is taking place characterized by rapidly growing signs of cynicism, apathy and political alienation. This is indeed a very interesting trend as Greece was intheeightiesthecountrywiththe highest levels of participation and politicization in Southern Europe. The policy of economic and fiscal stability through restrictions on public spending and incomes did stabilizetheeconomyandledtoan impressive improvement of several macroeconomic indicators. The country seemed to move according to the spirit of the Maastricht treaty along the tortuous road of convergence with the other European countries. This convergence, however, meant the continuation of an austerity policy which began in 1985, was briefly interrupted during the period, and was re-im- 96 about GREECE

11 POLITICAL SYSTEM AND ELECTIONS IN GREECE Karolos Papoulias, President of the Hellenic Republic the swearing-in ceremony plemented in the nineties and was followed, notwithstanding some differences, by both the New Democracy party and PASOK throughout the decade. This apparently endless struggle to overcome the country s economic problems and to meet the standards of Greece s partners in the European Union can be seen as the main causes of frustration and political alienation. What is more important isthatthissituationcausedalong term disenchantment with party politics and with party ideologies and programmes. Itmustbenotedthatafteradecade of consistent efforts, Greece managed to achieve the major objective of economic desciple and monetary stabilisation, thus fulfilling, evenattheverylastmomentthe criteria of the Maastricht treaty. This success resulted in the country s entry into the Euro zone while at thesametimechangedtoaconsiderable extent Greece s position and status within the European Union.Itwasperceivedasamajor success of the Simitis government to win, although with a thin majority the 2000, parliamentary election. The2000electionprovedoneofthe most closely contested in post war Greek electoral history. It was a clear choice between the two major political parties, and this fact enhanced the polarisation of the party system and, compared to the 1996 electoral results, led to the reinforce- mentofitstwomainpoleswithpa- SOKreceiving43.8percentofthe vote (and 158 seats) and New Democracy 42.7 per cent (and 125 seats). Thus the electoral results can beseenasareversal of thetendencythatappearedduringthemid90s indicating the emergence and crystallisation of new political parties. This tendency proved stillborn, as only the KKE party maintained its about GREECE 97

12 GOVERNMENT and POLITICS power under the leadership of Kostas Karamanlis who became prime minister at the age of 47. Kostas Karamanlis, Prime Minister, electoral influence (5.5 per cent and 11 seats), while thesynaspismos party managed at a very marginal level to secure parliamentary representation with 3.2 per cent of the vote and 6 seats in parliament. By contrast, the POL.AN did not participate in the election having suspended its political operation, while the DIKKI party received only 2.7 per cent of the vote and no parliamentary representation. Consequently, the attempts to create new parties proved unsuccessful, a fact well illustrated by the fate of the attempt made during the spring of 2001 by the popular ex mayor of Athens, Dimitris Avramopoulos, to create a new party, the Movement of Free Citizens, which a year later had to suspend its functioning. Avramopoulos, after a short period of independent political career, returned to the N.D. party a few months before the 2004 elections. The polarization of the party system was reconfirmed during the last parliamentary election held in March It was a clear reversal of the balance of power between the two major parties registered in the previous elections: After eleven years in opposition N.D. returned to 98 about GREECE The return of the N.D. party to power can be seen as a significant political change marking Greece's entry in the 21st century. The N.D. victory confirmed a large-scale change regarding the political personnel, and development already visible since the mid-nineties. Indeed, by the end of the twentieth century both major Greek political parties had drastically renewed their political personnel including their leadership. As some of the dominant personalities of the seventies and nineties are gone (namely Andreas Papandreou and Constantine Karamanlis) both PASOK and ND have elected a new leader and the leading party and parliamentary personnel has been extensively renewed. Greek political parties can no longer be described as personalistic and poorly organised nor as exclusively relying on clientelistic networks. The fact that the new Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis bears the name of his uncle (ex Prime Minister and twice President of the Republic) should be seen as having a symbolic rather than real importance. Similarly, PASOK after the eight years period of the Simitis leadership, chose George Papandreou (son of Andreas Papandreou) as the new party leader. It was a political initiative inspired and backed by Costas Simitis and implemented a few weeks before the March 2004 election. The change of leadership did not prevent PASOK' s electoral defeat. However, it indicates that both major parties have elected relatively young and at the same time well known political leaders following a

13 POLITICAL SYSTEM AND ELECTIONS IN GREECE new communication strategy and adoptinganewstyleandanewapproach in Greek party politics. Lastbutnotleast,atastructurallevel, the Greek political system has provedthatitisabletowithstand and overcome political crisis with remarkable resilience. The capacity to overcome crises, as that of the 1989/90 period, shows that democratic institutions are well consolidated and that it isvery likely that they will continue to function in the same smooth manner as in the past. USEFUL LINKS Ministry of Interior, Public Administration and Decentralisation htm TABLE 1 PRESIDENTS SINCE 1973 PERIOD PRESIDENTS 1 December June 1975 Michael Stassinopoulos 2 June May 1980 Constantine Tsatsos 3 May March 1985 Constantine Karamanlis 4 March March 1995 Christos Sartzetakis 5 March March 1995 Constantine Karamanlis 6 March March 2005 Kostis Stefanopoulos 7 March Karolos Papoulias TABLE 2 GOVERNMENTS SINCE 1974 PERIOD PARTY PRIME MINISTER 1 July November 1974 National UnityGovernment Constantine Karamanlis 2 November May 1980 N.D. Constantine Karamanlis 3 May October 1981 N.D. George Rallis 4 October June 1989 PASOK Andreas Papandreou 5 June October 1989 Coalition Government" (N.D. andsynaspismos) TzanisTzannetakis 6 October November 1989 John Grivas 7 November April 1990 EcumenicalGovernment (N.D.,PASOKandSYNASPISMOS) Xenophon Zolotas 8 April September 1993 N.D. Constantine Mitsotakis 9 October January 1996 PASOK Andreas Papandreou 10 January March 2004 PASOK KostasSimitis 11 March N.D. Karamanlis TABLE 3 ΕLECTIONS PARTY 17/11/ /11/ /10/1981 % Seats % Seats % Seats Extreme Right N.D EK-ND/EDIK PASOK KKE KKE interior Others TOTAL about GREECE 99

14 GOVERNMENT and POLITICS TABLE 4 ΕLECTIONS PARTY 2/6/ /6/1989 5/11/1989 % Seats % Seats % Seats ExtremeRight N.D PASOK KKE KKEinterior SYNASPISMOS Ecology Party DIANA Indep. Muslims Others TOTAL TABLE 5 ΕLECTIONS PARTY 8/4/ /10/ /9/1996 % Seats % Seats % Seats N.D PASOK * SYNASPISMOS * KKE POLAN DIKKI Ecology Party DIANA Indep.Muslims Others TOTAL *ThenumberofseatsincludestheMPswhohavebeensupportedjointlybySynaspismosandPASOK in five single member constituencies. TABLE 6 ΕLECTIONS 2000 PARTY VOTES % SEATS PASOK 3,008, N.D. 2,934, KKE 379, SYNASPISMOS 219, DEKKI 184, Others 141, TOTAL 6,868, TABLE 7 ΕLECTIONS 2004 PARTY VOTES % SEATS N.D. 3,360, PASOK 3,003, KKE 436, SYNASPISMOS 241, DEKKI 132, Others 232, TOTAL 7,408, about GREECE