PASOK

Ahead of Monday’s third critical presidential vote, government officials were canvassing MPs over the holidays in a last-ditch bid to garner additional support for the coalition’s candidate, former European Commissioner Stavros Dimas, and to avert snap elections.

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.

PASOK leader Evangelos Venizelos met briefly with his predecessor and former Prime Minister George Papandreou ahead of a parliamentary vote for president on Tuesday, shortly after sources close to the latter suggested that he will be announcing the formation of a new political party at the end of the year.

Former Prime Minister and ex-PASOK chief George Papandreou is reportedly poised to announce the formation of a new political party, Skai television cited Parliamentary sources as saying early in Tuesday.

Lawmakers in Greece are to make on Tuesday a second attempt at electing the country's new President.

The legislature in Athens failed to elect a head of state on December 17, since the only presidential candidate Stavros Dimas, the nominee of government partners from New Democracy and PASOK, was backed by only 160 MPs, with at least 200 (a two-thirds majority) needed for the step.

With all political parties now actively preparing for the prospect of snap elections, MPs are to vote in the second ballot of a critical three-phase presidential vote at noon on Tuesday.

There was growing pressure on the government on Thursday, even from within its own ranks, to come up with some kind of proposal that might bring the political parties together and avoid early 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.

A new poll published Wednesday, a few hours before Greek MPs start the first round of crucial voting to determine whether Parliament will elect a new president or whether the country will head to national elections, showed leftist SYRIZA opposition gaining a 3.2 percent lead over New Democracy, the larger of the two parties involved in Greece's coalition government.

Just a few hours ahead of a crucial presidential ballot on Wednesday, Greece's conservative-led government warned that failure to elect a new President could have devastating consequences for the country.