A fierce new confrontation between the Greek government and PASOK erupted after the main opposition party announced it would vote in favor of Elena Akrita’s candidacy for Fifth Deputy Speaker of the Hellenic Parliament. Government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis launched a sharp attack against PASOK leader Nikos Androulakis and his party, prompting a response from PASOK–Movement for Change spokesman Kostas Tsoukalas — to which government sources then fired back with their own rebuttal.
Government sources are insisting that PASOK deliberately avoided answering the core question posed by the government spokesman: why did the party vote against Yannis Stournaras, while simultaneously voting in favor of Elena Akrita for the position of Deputy Speaker of Parliament?
Read also: Elena Akrita: “I feel vindicated by this honor” — Her response to New Democracy’s rejection of her candidacy for Fifth Deputy Speaker of Parliament
Government sources on PASOK: “They are simply confirming Pavlos Marinakis’s point in the most emphatic way possible”
“PASOK’s response simply confirms, in the most emphatic way possible, exactly what the government spokesman posted,” government sources stated, commenting on the announcement made by PASOK–Movement for Change spokesman Kostas Tsoukalas. “There is no substantive answer whatsoever, not even the slightest reference to the party’s failure to vote for Mr. Stournaras — and, once again, there is a sleight of hand regarding an alleged earlier response from the government spokesman,” government sources added, referring specifically to Tsoukalas’s phrase: “Mr. Marinakis swallows the Spartans’ votes whole without question.” They concluded: “For the record, we are publishing Pavlos Marinakis’s response during the political correspondents’ briefing on January 16, 2025, regarding the Spartans’ votes — a response that makes it abundantly clear the exact opposite of what Mr. Tsoukalas claimed.“
JOURNALIST: Mr. Spokesman, following yesterday’s statement by the leader of the Spartans party, I would like to ask whether votes from that particular party are welcome to the government in relation to the election of the President of the Republic. Thank you.
P. MARINAKIS: No, they are not welcome. We are the political faction — the government — that has demonstrated this through our actions, unlike what has been said in the past by other parties, supposedly progressive ones, that claimed a monopoly on democratic sensibility. We give a clear and unequivocal “no,” and that answer carries weight. Even more weight, however, lies in the actions of this government — and specifically of the Prime Minister — who through a series of legislative interventions provided the judiciary with the appropriate legal tools to ensure that criminal organizations would not find their way into Parliament. This also allows the judiciary to examine, after the fact and regarding the current composition of Parliament, ongoing objections and appeals. The wording matters and must be precise — as today’s statement is — but our actions matter even more. That is why opposition party announcements, driven by their own embarrassment and their attempt to construct a far-right narrative around the Prime Minister’s choice of Mr. Tasoulas, fall well short of what the moment demands — they are entirely disconnected from reality and an affront to common sense.
Tsoukalas: “PASOK consistently votes in favor of deputy speakers proposed by parliamentary parties — with the exception of far-right and neo-Nazi formations”
Earlier, PASOK–Movement for Change spokesman Kostas Tsoukalas responded to the government spokesman regarding the main opposition party’s position and its decision to vote in favor of Elena Akrita for the role of Deputy Speaker of Parliament.
Kostas Tsoukalas’s response
PASOK’s position is clear: the party consistently votes in favor of deputy speakers proposed by parliamentary parties — both from the ruling coalition and the opposition — with the sole exception of far-right and neo-Nazi formations. The responsibility for the individuals nominated lies with their respective parliamentary groups. Mr. Marinakis, who swallows the Spartans’ votes whole without a word of criticism and even promotes their stance when they align with New Democracy on the budget and other legislation, is in no position to lecture PASOK on political integrity. Get serious, Mr. Marinakis.
Marinakis: “PASOK votes against Stournaras and ‘swallows’ Akrita whole — aligning itself with the most extreme voices from both ends of the political spectrum”
Pavlos Marinakis, in a social media post on Thursday (27/8), commented on PASOK’s decision to support SYRIZA’s Elena Akrita for the position of Deputy Speaker of Parliament.
Everyone makes their own choices
“Mr. Androulakis’s PASOK scrutinizes — and votes against — Mr. Stournaras, yet ‘swallows’ Ms. Akrita whole. Eleven years after ‘We Stay in Europe,’ the party is now aligning itself with the most extreme voices from both ends of the political spectrum. Everyone makes their own choices,” the government spokesman wrote pointedly.
Pavlos Marinakis’s post
