Stavros Dimas

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.

Prime Minister Antonis Samaras is set to reject any attempts for a last-minute deal between the government and the opposition over the election of Stavros Dimas as president, preferring instead to go to snap elections if the coalition fails to get the minimum 180 votes needed on December 29.

Prime Minister Antonis Samaras is set to get personally involved in the process of trying to convince independent and opposition MPs to elect Stavros Dimas as president, Kathimerini understands.

With the government still not in a position to elect a president, Prime Minister Antonis Samaras launched an all-out attack on SYRIZA on Thursday that was aimed to make independent and opposition MPs think twice about how they will vote when the ballot for head of state comes around.

Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras on Thursday accused opposition SYRIZA of bringing back Grexit fears and sending a message to the markets not to lend to the country by declaring its sovereign debt unsustainable.

The first of three possible parliamentary votes to elect Greece's new President will take place on Wednesday, December 17, at 7 p.m., sources have told Kathimerini.

After Greece's government announced that it would start the process of electing a new president early, here's what the constitution says about what comes next:

Prime Minister Antonis Samaras on Tuesday named former European Commissioner Stavros Dimas as his coalition’s candidate for early presidential elections this month, paving the way for weeks of political turbulence as the government scrambles to garner the 180 votes required to endorse Dimas and avert snap general elections.

Democratic Left (DIMAR) on Tuesday said that it will not be backing the coalition government's candidate for president in three Parliamentary votes expected to start next week.

The party, which split from the coalition last year, said in an announcement that it will not contribute to "the protraction of the political deadlocks being pursued by the present government."

Greek stocks plunged Dec. 9 on fears of a political stalemate after the government unexpectedly brought forward a high-stakes presidential election.
      
The vote by 300 members of parliament to replace President Karolos Papoulias was due in February but a first round has now been set for December 17.