Costas Tasoulas Elected as President of the Hellenic Republic Amid Opposition Reactions

Costas Tasoulas was elected in the fourth and final vote held in Parliament on Wednesday morning (February 12, 2025). The new President of the Hellenic Republic garnered 160 votes. Tassos Giannitsis, proposed by PASOK-KINAL, received 34 votes, Louka Katseli (proposed by SYRIZA) got 29 votes, and Kostas Kyriakou (proposed by Niki) obtained 14 votes. Thirty-nine MPs voted ‘present’ (KKE, Greek Solution), while abstentions came from New Left MPs, independents who left SYRIZA and joined Stavros Kaselakis’s party, and those from Freedom Row who left the session. SYRIZA president Sokrates Famellos criticized Prime Minister Mitsotakis for not securing support from other parties and highlighted the lack of transparency regarding the Tempia scandal. Dimitris Natsios of Niki described it as a purely partisan choice burdened by the Tempia crime scandal, pledging critical opposition. Conversely, Vasileios Stigkas of the Spartans praised Tasoulas, expressing confidence in his representation both domestically and internationally.