Pavlos Geroulanos

The leadership race for the opposition socialist PASOK party went underway Sunday, with voting starting at 7 a.m. at 950 polling stations across Greece.

Polls close at 7 p.m., although voting may be extended if turnout is high, especially in Athens and Thessaloniki. 

More than 167,814 citizens had voted by 2 p.m.

UPDATE: Nikos Androulakis finished first in the first round of PASOK’s internal elections. With 99.35% of the votes counted, Mr. Androulakis received 29.71%, followed by Charis Doukas with 21.38%, and Pavlos Geroulanos in third place with 21.15%. Anna Diamantopoulou follows with 19.56%, Michalis Katrinis with 5.9%, and Nadia Giannakopoulou with 2.3%.

A state of alert has been declared at the headquarters of the six candidates for the leadership of PASOK as the polls will open in just a few hours – tomorrow, Sunday, at 7 a.m.

The upcoming PASOK leadership elections are becoming increasingly unpredictable, with two major polls offering differing perspectives just before the first round of voting. In a survey by Pulse, the contest appears wide open, with differences between the leading candidates within the margin of error.

A few days before the members - and so-called friends - of PASOK head to the polls to choose their next leader, Kathimerini tracked the four leading candidates on their campaign trail. We accompanied them to cafes and public squares, where posters featuring their portraits frequently took center stage.

New Democracy maintains a large lead over PASOK, which is consolidating in second place, according to a major MRB poll aired on OPEN’s main newscast. Nikos Androulakis has a lead over PASOK a few days before the first round of elections, with Charis Doukas following close behind.

The voting intention

A picture of an absolute thriller between Haris Doukas and Nikos Androulakis as regards the first round of the PASOK elections next Sunday, according to a poll conducted by Interview for the website politic.gr

On Sunday at 7 a.m. the polls open for the internal election in PASOK and the candidates culminate their election campaigns. Right now, Haris Dukas and Pavlos Geroulanos are holding their main events in Athens.

Watch the speech of Pavlos Geroulanos:

Watch live the speech of the Mayor of Athens:

The six PASOK leaders’ candidates appear ready for the first “half-time” of the race, attempting in the 24 hours remaining until next Sunday to “open up” to wider audiences and attract as many undecided voters as possible around their candidacy.