Greek government officials have launched a fierce political attack against opposition party PASOK and its spokesperson Kostas Tsoukalas over parliamentary voting choices.
Government sources accused the opposition headquarters at Charilaou Trikoupi of dodging key questions raised by government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis regarding why PASOK voted for Elena Akrita but rejected Yannis Stournaras.
The escalation follows a social media post by Marinakis in which he claimed that PASOK quibbles over Stournaras while readily accepting Akrita for a high-level parliamentary role.
Dispute over parliamentary appointments
Government sources insisted that PASOK provided no substantive answer to the core question posed by the spokesman. They noted that the opposition statement contained no reference whatsoever to its failure to vote for Stournaras, asserting that PASOK's response merely confirmed the government's initial criticisms.
PASOK, formally known as the Panhellenic Socialist Movement, is Greece's primary center-left opposition political party, headquartered on Charilaou Trikoupi Street in Athens. New Democracy is the ruling center-right party led by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. Yannis Stournaras serves as the Governor of the Bank of Greece and is a former national finance minister, while Elena Akrita is a member of the Hellenic Parliament representing the left-wing opposition.
The Hellenic Parliament, Greece's 300-seat unicameral legislature in Athens, regularly votes on cross-party appointments, including vice-presidents proposed by individual parliamentary groups to help preside over legislative sessions.
PASOK defense and far right accusations
Earlier in the day, PASOK press spokesperson Kostas Tsoukalas pushed back strongly against Marinakis's comments regarding Akrita's candidacy for vice-president of parliament.
Tsoukalas stated that PASOK maintains a consistent policy of voting for deputy speakers proposed by parliamentary groups from both the governing majority and the opposition. He explained that the party makes an exception only for far-right and Nazi formations, adding that individual parliamentary groups hold sole responsibility for the candidates they propose.
Tsoukalas turned the criticism back onto the government spokesman, stating that Marinakis readily accepts votes from the far-right Spartans party. He added that Marinakis even advertises the support of the Spartans when they align with New Democracy on the national budget and other key legislation, concluding that the spokesman is in no position to deliver political lessons to PASOK.
Government rebuttal on Spartan votes
Government sources reacted sharply to Tsoukalas's claims about Marinakis and the Spartans, describing the spokesperson's statements as political manipulation and distortion.
To refute the allegations, government sources cited an official public statement delivered by Pavlos Marinakis on January 16, 2025. When asked directly at that time whether votes from the Spartans would be welcome in the parliamentary election for the President of the Republic, Marinakis had answered categorically that they were not welcome.
The Spartans party is a far-right political group represented in the Hellenic Parliament. Voting for the President of the Republic, the ceremonial head of state of Greece, is one of the most prominent constitutional duties carried out by members of parliament.
