Kyriakos Mitsotakis may continue the tactics of psychotherapists, engaging in exercises of... self-reliance and empowerment of his party officials, but the truth is that quite a few have lost their sleep.
On the one hand the party's low flights compared to the 41 percent, and on the other hand the parties of Antonis Samaras and Ilias Kasidiaris in electoral constituencies, deal the final blow to those who believed that, even with difficulty, they would enter Parliament.
The biggest problem is faced by MPs who relied on right-wing and traditional voters who are no longer choosing ND and have found an outlet in other right-wing formations.
Countdown
The possibility of the creation of a party by Antonis Samaras does not merely reshuffle the political deck on the right side of the political spectrum.
It mainly opens a difficult discussion within New Democracy: which MPs will face voter losses, who will come under pressure in their constituencies, and who might see their re-election become harder.
Behind the scenes, according to information conveyed by local political networks, associates of the former Prime Minister are activating contacts and seeking footholds across the entire country.
Interest is directed both toward cadres who have distanced themselves from ND and toward figures who maintain personal and political ties with the Messenian politician.
The critical question is not only how many votes a new party could gather, but from which reservoirs it will draw them.
Messenia: The obvious front
Messenia constitutes the most symbolic and politically sensitive case.
Elected there were Miltos Chrysomallis, who is in the inner circle of Antonis Samaras, Giannis Lambropoulos, and others.
The personal influence of the former Prime Minister in the region, at the level of cadres, Local Government, and professional bodies, creates the conditions for realignments if he ultimately proceeds with founding a party.
For ND, the problem will be twofold: on the one hand to retain voters who maintain traditional ties with the former Prime Minister, and on the other hand to prevent a political differentiation from turning into electoral bleeding.
Pella and Thessaloniki: Old relations and new balances
In Northern Greece, cases of interest are also recorded. Dimitris Vartzopoulos was for years a close associate of Antonis Samaras, holding an important role at the Maximos Mansion during his prime ministerial term. Their relationship, according to the relevant reporting, was tested after the MP's stance on the same-sex couples bill. However, the 28,377 preference votes he gathered in the last elections constitute a strong personal foothold.
In Pella, Giorgos Karasmanis, who ranked third among the elected MPs of the prefecture, is counted among the interlocutors of the former Prime Minister. Dionysis Stamenitis, on the other hand, previously had references to the Samaras environment, from which he has distanced himself in recent years.
In Thessaloniki A, Stratos Simopoulos could find himself in a more demanding electoral contest if local nuclei that will support the Samaras venture are activated. The constituency has intense internal party competition, and any loss of votes can affect the final balances.
Serres, Samos, and Evros: Where cracks may open
In Serres, Theofilos Leontaridis, who in the last elections finished last among the prefecture's elected MPs, may come under pressure if the new party manages to attract traditional voters of ND.
In Samos, Christodoulos Stefanadis maintains a personal relationship with Antonis Samaras, an element that adds interest to local balances, which is why Kyriakos Mitsotakis is fielding... his own candidate in the single-seat constituency.
In Evros, the mobility of former MEP Akis Gerontopoulos, who has stated that he supports the venture under formation, may affect the rallying around Tasos Dimoschakis, provided the latter remains a candidate with ND.
The question is whether the contacts will acquire an organized electoral expression or remain at the level of political messages.
Achaea, Aetolia-Acarnania, and Pieria
In Achaea, figures such as Antonis Kounavis, Angelos Tsigkris, and Thanasis Davlouros are mentioned as cadres who could contribute to developing the presence of a new political entity.
Andreas Katsaniotis also had relations with the circle of interlocutors of the former Prime Minister.
In Aetolia-Acarnania, Kostas Karagkounis is counted among those with past contacts with the Samaras circle, but it is considered certain that he will be an ND candidate once again, as Kyriakos Mitsotakis appointed him deputy minister.
In Pieria, former MP Nikos Stavrogiannis is reportedly approaching disillusioned ND voters.
Xenofon Baraliakos, Anna Mani-Papadimitriou, and Spyros Koulkoudinas would, in such an eventuality, have to confront the new local balances.
In the Dodecanese, however, the 49.93 percent recorded by ND in 2023 and the strong electoral base of Giannis Pappas compose a different picture.
The Kasidiaris factor
Added to the equation is the factor of Ilias Kasidiaris, as any potential realignment to the right of ND can intensify the competition for voters expressing protest against the government.
However, the available data for the specific constituencies mainly concern mobility around Antonis Samaras and do not permit a secure correlation of specific seats with potential losses toward a formation connected with Ilias Kasidiaris.
Until intentions and candidacies are clarified, these constituencies remain areas of heightened interest, not proven cases of MPs losing their seats, with several losing their sleep, such as Nikos Vlachakos (Piraeus A), Dimitris Kalogeropoulos (Western Athens), Periklis Mantas (Messenia), Katerina Papakosta (Trikala), Diamantis Golidakis (Thessaloniki A), and others.
O Peiraiarxis
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