The new coalition government of premier Loukas Papademos obtained 255 votes out of a total of 300. This majority is probably not as strong as it looks. It is a well established fact that the power of a government does not primarily depend on its numerical majority. Greece’s only previous coalition government (under PM Tzanetakis) lasted only 102 days, while the “all party” government under PM Zolotas only 139 days. This axiom still applies today.
There is no doubt that the appointment of Lucas Papademos as leader of Greece’s interim government will accelerate the process of deconstruction/transformation of the domestic party system.
The initiative taken by George Papandreou in announcing on the evening of Monday, 31 October his intention to hold a referendum for the approval of the new loan agreement acted as a fuse for the further deepening of the political crisis.
The 30th anniversary of the socialists coming to power (18/10/1981) finds PASOK at the lowest point in its history since the restoration of democracy in Greece.
The attitudes of Greek public opinion toward the crisis and the euro have varied during the past four months in a way that would appear to reveal certain contradictions: Increasing ideological confusion, with the feeling of outrage still prevailing, pessimism about the future of the Eurozone, growing fear about the likelihood of Greece exiting the EMU.
The ‘rallying effect’ created in the ruling party’s favor by the agree-ment of 21 July, thanks also to the wholehearted support of the me-dia, lasted for just two weeks.
The July measurement of the Political Barometer reveals increasing polarization of the political and social climate. The Greek parliament’s enactment of the mid-term austerity program, the significant escalation of social protests and the severity of the police response have had a catalytic impact on the electorate.
The result of the parliamentary election of 16 September 2007 demonstrated, for the second time after the prefectural elections of October 2006, that during the first (uncompleted) term in power of the conservative New Democracy party there was no substantial shift in the electorate, nor was the clear lead of the ruling party ever disputed.
The sharp decline in the ruling party’s electoral support and the prime minister’s standing are causing a rapid transformation of the political scene. For yet another month, PASOK’s electoral support continued its free fall.
Before the introduction of the single currency, Greece had one of the highest percentages of social support for the euro (72%, Eurobarometer data). This figure was not only higher than the average for EU-15 (59%) but also higher than the average for the Eurozone countries (66%).