Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis visited Kilkis and Thessaloniki on Tuesday to promote government infrastructure and halt electoral defections to right-wing parties.
The tour across northern Greece came immediately after the abrupt resignation of Michalis Bekiris, the director of his parliamentary office and coordinator of his Thessaloniki bureau, who stepped down on Monday amid controversy over his official appointment.
Bekiris met with Mitsotakis at the Maximos Mansion in Athens on Monday to announce his intention to step down in order to defend himself, acting shortly before a tour where he would have appeared alongside the prime minister.
Resignation of Michalis Bekiris
Bekiris had faced days of mounting pressure from opposition parties and Greek news outlets over his credentials. The reports questioned whether he held a recognised university degree and whether an official appointment decree had ever been published in the Government Gazette for his parliamentary position.
The outgoing aide had not offered detailed public explanations in recent days, stating only that he would seek legal redress against what he denounced as an unprecedented campaign of personal targeting.
In a statement confirming his departure, Bekiris insisted that the move was temporary and did not constitute any admission of guilt. He said the decision was entirely personal, representing neither a retreat nor an acceptance of any accusation, but a conscious choice of dignity and responsibility.
Bekiris added that his duty was to protect the honour and reputation of his family and safeguard his personal relationship with Mitsotakis, which he described as extending beyond politics. He stated that he would now confront his critics in court.
The departure delivered an unexpected shock to government colleagues who had spent days fielding questions about the controversy. Bekiris shares a long-standing political relationship with Mitsotakis, dating back to 2004 when both men were elected to parliament in the same legislative cohort. Bekiris subsequently directed Mitsotakis's office when he won the New Democracy leadership, stepped back briefly from frontline duties, and later returned to coordinate prime ministerial affairs in parliament and Thessaloniki.
Electoral pressure in northern Greece
The leadership crisis unfolded as Mitsotakis sought to repair his party's standing in northern Greece, where New Democracy suffered major losses in the European elections. Quantitative analyses held by the prime minister's office at the Maximos Mansion show that northern Greece has become the governing party's Achilles' heel.
While New Democracy retains robust support across the capital region of Attica and has recorded gains in agricultural districts and provincial capitals, internal party data indicates that northern regions require more intensive engagement and clearer promotion of state initiatives.
Government strategists are particularly concerned that disaffected voters are shifting toward political groups to the right of New Democracy ahead of upcoming national elections. The primary beneficiary of these voter defections has been Greek Solution, a right-wing party with strong roots across the north.
Mitsotakis is seeking to halt the outflow of conservative voters by emphasising public investments across multiple northern prefectures. Government officials are also focusing on financial relief packages designed to support household incomes against steep winter heating expenses.
Agricultural aid and heating subsidies
The government's northern outreach places direct emphasis on energy costs and fuel relief for local communities. Special funding measures include the state heating allowance and broader fuel support programs intended to ease the burden of the approaching winter.
The administration is also highlighting targeted assistance for the agricultural sector. Starting on November 1, diesel fuel for farmers will be distributed completely tax-free directly at the pump across the country.
The tax-free fuel initiative forms part of a broader government effort to restore trust among rural communities in Macedonia, where high operational costs and agricultural concerns have contributed to political discontent.
Tour itinerary across Kilkis and Thessaloniki
Mitsotakis began his northern itinerary on Tuesday morning in Kilkis, a border prefecture where New Democracy recorded particularly sharp declines during the European elections. The prime minister scheduled his regional visits shortly before a planned departure for New York.
The official schedule started shortly after 11:00 am at the construction site for the road section connecting Assiros and Nea Santa. Mitsotakis then visited local manufacturing plants, followed by a tour of the Kilkis Nursing Home, an elder care institution managed by the Social Welfare Center of Central Macedonia.
The tour continued with an inspection of major upgrade works along the Chalastra to Evzonoi highway corridor, a critical transport artery leading to the border with North Macedonia. At midday, Mitsotakis met with local residents in Neo Agioneri, continuing his established practice of direct public discussions used during visits inside and outside Attica.
Later in the day, the prime minister travelled south to Thessaloniki. In the afternoon, he was scheduled to press the ceremonial button inaugurating the new architectural lighting system for the historic White Tower on the city's waterfront, followed by a visit to the Hamza Bey Mosque, also known as the Alcazar, ahead of his flight to the United States.
