Democratic Left

Greek MPs are due to vote in the third and final presidential ballot at noon, local time, with the government’s candidate Stavros Dimas needing to gather 180 votes so snap elections can be avoided.

Coalition leaders Antonis Samaras and Evangelos Venizelos have been busy over the holiday period in a bid to win over lawmakers in Greece's 300-seat Parliament to vote for their presidential candidate in the third and final ballot on December 29.

Prime Minister Antonis Samaras is expected to make one last public appeal to wavering MPs to back his presidential candidate, Stavros Dimas, but will not offer anything more in exchange than he already has, Kathimerini understands.

Greek Parliament failed to elect a president for a second time on Tuesday after 168 of 300 MPs voted in favor of the candidate, Stavros Dimas, meaning a third ballot will be needed on December 29.

Democratic Left’s parliamentary spokesman Nikos Tsoukalis has rejected a report claiming that his party may be on the point of breaking apart.

“This report is so far from the truth that I don’t need to comment on him,” Tsoukalis told Athina 984 FM.

A Public Issue poll published on Friday showed SYRIZA’s lead over New Democracy narrowing by 4.5 percentage points since last month.

Nevertheless, the opposition party still held a lead of 7 percentage points over the conservatives, according to the polling company.

Leftist SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras on Thursday categorically ruled out any kind of consensus with other political parties before elections.

Former PASOK MPs Anna Diamantopoulou (photo) and Giorgos Floridis announced on Thursday that they are launching a new center-left movement, which may become a party that will take part in snap elections early next year if Parliament fails to elect a president.

The two former ministers said they are aiming to attract reformists.

The government garnered 160 votes in the first round of crucial presidential elections on Wednesday, performing slightly worse than anticipated and increasing speculation about snap polls.

Democratic Left leader Fotis Kouvelis says he will not criticize his MPs if they choose to go against the party line and vote for the government’s presidential candidate, Stavros Dimas.

“IF a DIMAR MP votes for the president of the republic, I will in no way consider them apostates or venal,” said Kouvelis.