New Democracy is moving towards a more intensive organisational drive, with the prime minister’s office seeking to rally the party’s base and win back the trust of voters who have drifted away from the governing party. Regional visits, the mobilisation of party officials and a planned meeting of party bodies point to heightened readiness ahead of the next election.At the heart of the strategy is Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ effort to maintain New Democracy’s cohesion, while not ignoring pockets of discontent that have emerged after almost eight years in government. He set out his position in Kilkis, issuing a stern warning to government and party officials and making clear that he would not tolerate “complacency and arrogance” in the run-up to the election.
The message was accompanied by a clear call to reconnect with the public. The prime minister urged party officials to put aside internal grumbling and complaints and meet people in their workplaces and cafés, listening to their concerns.
Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ reference to New Democracy’s traditional voters and veteran activists also formed part of this approach; he effectively called on them to rally behind the party again. At the same time, he defended the strategy of broadening the party’s appeal, responding indirectly but unequivocally to Antonis Samaras’ criticism that it was diluting the party’s political identity.
The prime minister recalled the pledge he made when he was elected leader of New Democracy ten years ago: to change, renew and modernise the party, putting it back on course for power. “I honoured the commitment I made to you,” he said, citing the party’s three election results that reached 40%.
The case for broadening the party’s appeal
In this way, he sought to defend the political choice to broaden the party’s appeal, signalling that New Democracy can retain its traditional supporters while also reaching voters beyond its narrow party base. The challenge, however, is to turn this political legacy into electoral momentum today, at a time when dissatisfaction with specific government decisions is testing the party’s resilience.
As part of preparations on the ground, the next stop is Epirus, where government and party delegations will tour the four regional units today and tomorrow. The aim is to strengthen New Democracy’s local presence and communicate the government’s work directly to local communities.
Meanwhile, the Cabinet is expected to meet next week, and a meeting of the New Democracy Executive Secretariat is also planned. The party body has been relatively inactive recently. Its reactivation is of particular interest as the leadership seeks to improve coordination between the government and the party and put officials on alert.
Today, while in New York, the prime minister will chair an open high-level discussion under the Greek Presidency of the United Nations Security Council on “Maintaining International Peace and Security: Emerging Technologies and Maritime Security”.
Tomorrow, Friday, he will take part by videoconference in a discussion with Bastian Giegerich, head of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, as part of the IISS Manama Dialogue 2026, being held in Bahrain.