The big contest between the ELAS of Alexis Tsipras and PASOK under Nikos Androulakis is over who will take the top spot in the left-progressive camp. Optimists believe it is also possible to come first in the party rankings if New Democracy’s resilience is irreparably weakened by the harsh winter ahead and a large part of society’s inability to “make ends meet” amid rising costs for fuel, groceries and housing. Much will also depend on the “Samaras party”, which pollsters say will further hamper New Democracy.
On the second point, both parties’ strategists are optimistic that turnout at the polls will rise. They believe it could increase enough to put even more pressure on the current governing party, since indications they have received suggest that this group — at least 15%, according to Amalias — which stayed away from the 2023 election and remains “on the sofa”, will turn out in a punitive mood towards the government.
The progressive-minded among these voters, both teams agree, are waiting to see which of the two parties — PASOK or ELAS — can generate momentum for political change and win their support at the ballot box.
But the number of voters — about 20% — who decide what to vote for “literally at the ballot box” is far from negligible, so the fight will be fierce and continue until the final minutes of the election…
The big challenge, of course, is ensuring that this group, along with voters drifting away from New Democracy, does not opt for far-right “solutions”. That puts the persuasiveness and credibility of the left-progressive parties centre stage for the long campaign period ahead.
ELAS: Confidence in a progressive lead — and the gaps
ELAS figures and Mr Tsipras himself are certain the party will rise to a share beginning with a “2” before too long, though not immediately. Its main advantage, they say, is that PASOK failed to make significant gains during the two and a half years when it “had the field to itself” — from July 2023, when Tsipras resigned as SYRIZA leader, to May 2026, when ELAS was founded.
“Will it manage it now?” they ask rhetorically, pointing to the “push” to build their own organisation so they can start work immediately, going “door to door” and “town by town, village by village, neighbourhood by neighbourhood”.
They believe that with the costed, measured programme Mr Tsipras presented in Thessaloniki, “we took a serious step towards credibility” (at the expense of “popular appeal”, as party figures acknowledge). The gaps they need to fill quickly concern two important areas: getting the programme across and fleshing it out by sector, and raising the profile of ELAS figures, most of whom are new faces.
“People ask us who the ministers will be if you win the election. It’s a reasonable question, since they don’t see any … battle-hardened party figures around Alexis,” they note. On this point, Mr Tsipras remains committed to relying on the new faces already making up the party’s governing bodies, with a few exceptions from the old SYRIZA — most recently, Efi Achtsioglou joining ELAS live on air.
That is why it was deemed necessary for these new faces to step up their presence in public debate, even though almost all of them have jobs and do not have … unlimited time for appearances. “They need to prepare thoroughly, and policy chiefs should be ready to speak beyond their own brief so they can respond to the challenges and surprises of everyday politics,” they note.
There will also be efforts to give the party’s positions greater “popular appeal”. Mr Tsipras’s intervention setting out “four tools” to tackle high energy costs was no accident, nor was the emphasis on the proposal to give “€500 to every student studying away from home”, following reports of students unable even to enrol at universities far from home.
ELAS does not seem particularly concerned about its forced absence from Parliament (“no sitting MP will join the party without first giving up their seat”). Its figures say the gap will be more than made up for by outreach trips and tours around the country, with personal contact taking the place of sterile parliamentary debates, which, in any case, do not attract … high television ratings.
Mr Tsipras is already preparing for a two-day tour of Crete tomorrow and the day after, accompanied by a large ELAS delegation led by its secretary, former MP Miltos Chatzigiannakis.
PASOK: You don’t change a winning formula
At PASOK, confidence in a polling comeback — and in taking second place — is running high after a slight rise in its ratings in September and ELAS’s stagnation.
And because “you don’t change a winning formula”, PASOK headquarters on Charilaou Trikoupi Street will stick religiously to its September strategy. Around the anniversary of 3 September and the Thessaloniki International Fair, party teams criss-crossed Crete and Central Macedonia, with speeches by Nikos Androulakis bringing their visits to a close.
The same approach was then used across the South Aegean islands. Mr Androulakis also made a separate, two-day visit to Kastellorizo yesterday, a trip with strong national symbolism. Similar plans are in place for the whole country.
His aides believe the slight improvement in the party’s poll ratings is due not only to its “outreach to the people” but also to its interventions on major issues such as the cost of living, the housing crisis and energy. Above all, they say, it reflects headline proposals “that were not bogged down in costings”, such as a 13th pension payment and the restoration of EKAS for low-income pensioners.
For that reason, party officials say, the proposals will be presented “again and again”, with the aim of reaching every interested citizen. PASOK also wants to be credited for every government concession, even an incomplete one, such as the 120-instalment scheme.
Parliament will remain at the centre of PASOK’s political activity, particularly with ELAS absent from the chamber. Mr Androulakis has already made a point of addressing the plenary once a week or, at least, every ten days.
The party’s high level of activity was also evident in the flurry of amendments it recently submitted on cutting the special consumption tax on fuel, abolishing the Golden Visa, reducing VAT on the islands and supporting fishermen. In the coming days, it will also submit a bill on “private debt — protection of the primary residence”.