With a clear head start of 5%, against his contestant Vagelis Meimarakis, Kyriakos Mitsotakis won the leadership vote for New Democracy. This victory sends a multiple political message.
- It signals the end of the old-party faction of N.D. who – contrary in substance from the vision of its founder Constantine Karamanlis, misappropriated his name.
- It displays the opposition of party members, who rallied massively to the party ballots, to “guidelines” and pressures from the party “barons”, especially in Macedonia.
- It ushers the clarification of the ideological stance of N.D. as a centre-right, liberal party.
- It inaugurates a clear and dynamic Opposition, displaying the positive political positions of N.D.
Most important of all, it signals a new era for Greece, with a clear European, modern and extrovert orientation. We believe that Kyriakos Mitsotakis, through his presence at Parliament and the changes he will make to party organisation, will project an image of N.D. as a reforming and modernising power, in both economy and society; fighting the antiquated, levelling, Marxist fixations of the Tsipras government, which divide society, deepen recession and push all progressive professional and business people into emigration.
High time to separate weeds from wheat and Greek people from backwardness.
By Maximos