Friends and supporters greeted Katerina Notopoulou with applause just hours after her resignation from SYRIZA, at a political event held on Wednesday afternoon (8 July 2026) in Nea Krini, Kalamaria.
A Political, Not Just Personal, Departure
Notopoulou described her exit from SYRIZA as “deeply personal and difficult—but above all political”, delivering pointed remarks about the party’s trajectory and its current capacity to contribute to a genuine progressive alternative. The former MP for Thessaloniki A’ appeared before the audience with a clear message: departure, not withdrawal.
“The SYRIZA chapter is closing,” she said. “My continued presence in the party no longer serves either my political convictions or the country’s real need for a viable political way forward,” she added, underscoring the explicitly political nature of her decision.
‘Many Pages Left to Write Together’
Notopoulou emphasized that she remains highly active—whether as a citizen, a worker, or within local government—and stressed that her political journey does not end with leaving the party’s headquarters on Koudouriotou Street.
“A chapter closes, but the book has many pages left for us to write together,” she said, capturing the tone of her speech.
She reflected on past political battles—some won, others lost—and noted she can still look citizens “in the eye.” That phrase carried clear weight: an effort to distinguish her own path from the inward-looking image and perceived decline now associated with SYRIZA.
Context: Tensions Ahead of Key Party Meeting
Notopoulou’s resignation did not come out of the blue. It forms part of a wave of internal developments within SYRIZA, unfolding just days before a pivotal Central Committee meeting scheduled for Saturday, 11 July 2026. That gathering comes amid the re-emergence of Alexis Tsipras and broader realignments across Greece’s centre-left landscape.
She informed party leader Sokratis Famellos by phone and also sent a formal letter to Nikitas Kaklamanis, Speaker of the Hellenic Parliament, officially resigning from her parliamentary seat.
Succession Expected
The seat is expected to be filled by first alternate candidate Giannis Amanatidis—a former Deputy Minister of National Defence and Foreign Affairs—who reportedly intends to retain it, believing SYRIZA must continue as an independent political force.