SYRIZA: From a political alliance to a single party and government
The party was founded in 2004 as a political alliance of various small leftist parties and organizations, but the biggest part was “Synaspismos”, which was the “Coalition of the Left and Ecology Movements”.
Megan’s mom has been fascinated with the behind-the-scenes high-pressure compromising that the ‘banking elites’ have forced onto Greece. Here comments are interjected below, between the facts about Syriza as a political party.
Although at first the party was not very successful during the national elections, it was evident that the demise of the old political forces and the economic crisis that started in Greece in 2009, started to give SYRIZA more votes. Since May 2012, when SYRIZA emerged from the elections as the second party in the Parliament of Greece, with a percentage of 17%, its evolution from an alliance into a single party of the modern radical Left was essential. This is because the political system in Greece would not allow SYRIZA in that form to become the government if it won the election in the future.
SYRIZA’s election percentage skyrocketed in 2012 to 27%, with 71 members or parliament of 300 in total. On January 25, 2015 national elections were held in Greece, and these elections resulted in a historic victory of SYRIZA, with 36% of the votes and 149 members of parliament. Six months earlier, at the European Parliament Elections, SYRIZA had already become the first party of Greece, electing six members to the European Parliament.
SYRIZA President Alexis Tsipras formed a new government which was a coalition government with the Party of Independent Greeks, because the leading party did not have the required 151 Members of parliament to form a government. Within the same year a group of members of the parliament from SYRIZA declared their opposition to the negotiations of the Greek government with the EU and IMF about the economic situation in Greece and either decided to act independently or join a new political party called “Laiki Enotita”.
This led to new elections in just a few months, in September 2015. In these elections SYRIZA was once again the first political party, with 35,46% of the votes and again a government was formed with the support of the Party of Independent Greeks.
September 2005 elections – Pink color represents the regions won by SYRIZA and blue the regions won by New Democracy party
The origins of the party
In 1989 there was a new attempt from left parties in Greece to unite and form a strong political alliance. This led to the creation of “Synaspismos – the Coalition of the Left Party and Progress”. This was practically an alliance of the Greek Communist Party (KKE) and EAP, which was a transformation of another communist party that did not support the Soviet Union at that time. There were also many other smaller bodies of the same political space.
The participation in government with New Democracy conservative party in 1989 and the developments in socialist countries, was the cause for new divisions. Efforts to transform the Alliance into a single party failed and KKE withdrew from the Coalition. The course of the two parties finally divorced and now one of the fiercest critics of SYRIZA are the KKE.
Alexis Tsipras – The president of SYRIZA
Alexis Tsipras, born in Athens, July 28, 1974 is the president of SYRIZA and prime minister of Greece at the moment, after the elections of January 25, 2015 and again on September 21, 2015, He is also one of the vice presidents of the European Left Party.
Alexis Tsipras developed his political activity from his school years, participating in leftist organizations. In 2006 he was nominated for mayor of Athens, with the support of Synaspismos. During the 5th Congress of Synaspismow, in February 2008, he was elected president of the party with 70%. In the 2009 elections, he was elected for the first time as a member of the parliament in Greece.
In the 2012 elections SYRIZA emerged as the second party and Alexis Tslpras occupied the position of the leader of the opposition. In July 2013, after the dissolution of Synaspismos that transformed SYRIZA into a single party, he was elected as president. In the elections of 2014, in parallel with the elections in Greece, he was also a candidate for the post of European Commission President of the European Left Party.
In the elections of January 25, 2015 SYRIZA came first in votes with 36.34% and 149 seats. Alexis Tsipras agreed to cooperate with the Independent Greeks and personally got a government order from the president of the republic. The new Prime Minister sworn in January 26, together with the new government. He resigned on August 20 and again vowed, after the electoral victory of SYRIZA on 21 September. Alexis Tsipras is the second youngest prime minister of the country.
He studied Civil Engineering at the National Technical University of Athens from which he graduated in February 2000. In 2003 he completed Postgraduate Studies in Urbanism – Planning again at the NTUA. The title of the thesis he prepared was “Flexible forms of employment and their intensity in the EU and Greece. Focus on Perama Shipbuilding”.
Alexis Tsipras cohabits with Betty Baziana with whom he has signed a cohabitation pact. They have two sons. Alexis Tsipras is an atheist, and has not perform a religious marriage with his partner nor religious christening for his two children. On taking the order to form a government he gave a political oath, making him the first ever Prime Minister of Greece who gave religious oath.
