The candidates for the presidency of New Democracy have been finalized, with Evangelos Meimarakis, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Apostolos Tzitzikostas and Adonis Georgiadis vying for the helm of the conservative party.
Some confusion was caused over the candidacy of Mr. Georgiadis, as he submitted his application with the necessary 50 votes from the party’s political council about ‘7 or 8 minutes’ late on Friday. As such, the party’s central election committee unanimously decided to reject his application.
This decision caused major tension within the party, with criticism aimed at party secretary Andreas Papamimikos, who presided over the central election committee. Mr. Meimarakis, who welcomed Mr. Georgiadis’ candidacy, was particularly scathing in his criticism and stated he has not spoken to the party secretary since the September elections.
Even former party leader Antonis Samaras commented that the decision to reject Mr. Georgiadis’ candidacy was “wrong, irrational and a traumatic decision”. Following the major uproar, the party’s central election committee overturned its earlier decision.
