Hours after the end of the New Left congress, where members and officials essentially appeared to favor their party’s inaction—meaning they don’t want to change anything despite poor polling results and clashing views on collaborations—Alexis Charitsis posted a statement debunking scenarios that suggested he and Nasos Iliopoulos would join PASOK. It’s worth noting that recent information from the main opposition party indicated that Alexis Charitsis, should the New Left split, would join PASOK, with whom he was reportedly in advanced discussions.
“The New Left congress debunked the ridiculous scenarios being circulated (one newspaper was claiming I would be a candidate—along with Nasos Iliopoulos—for PASOK! Give me a break!)” the New Left president characteristically stated.
The truth is that for quite some time, sources from Charilaou Trikoupi street had information that Alexis Charitsis could join PASOK’s ballot, specifically on the national list, as they consider him a political figure who fits within PASOK. The same sources said this obviously doesn’t apply to Efi Achtsioglou and Dimitris Tzanakopoulos, since both officials have a more pronounced left-wing imprint in their political careers. Within this narrative, they also distinguished Nasos Iliopoulos, who, despite his leftist origins, has never bothered Nikos Androulakis’s party.
Charitsis steps back to prevent party split
It should be noted that based on this narrative, Alexis Charitsis’s internal party opponents believed the party president would pursue a split in order to proceed with his integration into PASOK. Ultimately, Alexis Charitsis not only didn’t split his party but also took many steps back to avoid a division.
Beyond debunking this information, Alexis Charitsis referred to the congress saying that “the congress’s political decision confirms the founding act of the New Left: that contemporary radical and reformist Left has as its main concern the formation of a large, open front against the Right. A front of the Left, ecology, and left-wing social democracy. We are at a historic moment. Where everything is fluid. Where, if we don’t act with urgency, black darkness will spread over our lives. In such moments, the New Left must raise the flag of counterattack. And exhaust every possibility for unifying movements based on a radical program of immediate changes. For ‘bread and roses.’ For social equality, climate justice, political freedom. Our Congress’s decision gives us momentum to do exactly that. And we will do it.”
