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PASOK on top in local government elections

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Boutaris. Thessaloniki.

Socialist-backed mayoral candidate Yiannis Boutaris who won in the northern city of Thessaloniki, the second largest city of Greece, speaks, early Monday, Nov. 15, 2010. Greece's governing Socialists won mayoral races in Greece's two largest cities for the first time in 24 years. Photo: AP Photo/Nikolas Giakoumidis

16 Nov 2010

Greece's ruling PASOK party won the majority of regional run-off elections on Sunday but turnout was a record low across the country.

The second round of elections, which also heralded the introduction of a new streamlined system of local and regional government, saw PASOK win eight regions while the main opposition New Democracy (ND) party won the remaining five.

PASOK won the regions of Eastern Macedonia-Thrace, Attica, Northern Aegean, Western Greece, Crete, Southern Aegean, Peloponnese and Sterea Ellada while ND triumphed in the regions of Western Macedonia, Epirus, Thessaly, Ionian Islands and Central Macedonia.

The second round of elections saw Athens and Thessaloniki elect Socialist mayors after years of being New Democracy strongholds.

Yiorgos Kaminis, who was backed by ruling Pasok and part of the Left, will be the new mayor of Athens, with 52% of the vote.

Nikitas Kaklamanis, the outgoing mayor, backed by main opposition New Democracy (ND) accepted the result gracefully and offered to assist Kaminis whenever the need arises.

Things were not so clear cut in Thessaloniki, where, with all votes counted, Pasok-backed Yiannis Boutaris (50.2%) defeated the ND candidate Constantinos Gioulekas (49.8%) by just 419 votes. Gioulekas has already asked for a recount.

 In Piraeus Vassilis Mihaloliakos (ND) will be the new mayor with 51.83% of the vote, defeating Yiannis Mihas (Pasok) by over three percentage points.

In Patras, independent candidate Yiannis Dimaras established his victory with 53.63% of the total vote.

As regards the number of municipalities won by each party, PASOK won 73 municipalities, 49 municipalities by itself and the rest in cooperation with the Ecologists and the Democratic Left.

Main opposition party New Democracy won 41 municipalities, the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) one (Petroupoli), and the Radical Left Coalition (SYRIZA) also one in cooperation with the Ecologists and six in conjunction with the Democratic Left.

The Ecologists Greens won one municipality in cooperation with SYRIZA, three with PASOK, two with the Democratic Left and eight in cooperation with PASOK and the Democratic Left.

Lastly, the Democratic Left won six municipalities by itself, two with the Ecologists, six with SYRIZA, eight with PASOK and the Ecologists and 14 with PASOK.

However the results have been skewed by 54% abstention, the highest ever recorded in Greece.

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Comments

As an Australian Hellene I really do not care which political party won local government elections since from what I saw and heard on my recent trip over there their local governments are PATHETIC compared to ours in Victoria. The level of service that they offer is virtually non existent yet they have more councillors working, no paid, to be full time than we do and yet achieving nothing but financial success for the cafenia. I have two cousins and an uncle who are owed 4 months pay by their employer, their local council and yet they continue to work in the hope that they have jobs worth keeping. Sanitation and cleaning is almost non existent compared to the great services we offer, local transport controls are a joke and crime prevention - well I will shift the blame there to the little kiddies who are employed as police but who mainly spend time with each other talking, smoking, chewing and knowing nothing about what is going on around them What may be worse is that other than money, for which tourists are fleeced,as they are across Europe, they do not want help or advice or other support Yet the people are our relations, our families, our friends. They deserve better I can only hope that Mr Papandreou, who is valiantly trying to save the nation, will now significantly increase his efforts, and that he can root out the corruption that has strangled Ellada for decades.
Submitted by atkenos on Fri, 2010-11-19 07:56.

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