Greece’s center left Pasok Party has three days to form a coalition government or Greeks will return to the polls for new elections in June. Pasok’s opportunity comes after failed attempts to form coalitions by the conservative New Democracy Party and left wing Syriza Party. Analysts believe an agreement is unlikely due to the Syriza party’s strong opposition to austerity measures supported by both New Democracy and Pasok.Pasok finished third in last Sunday’s elections which produced political gridlock and brought the previously marginal Syriza into prominence. Evangelos Venizelos, Pasok’s leader acknowledged the uphill battle he faces in forming a government but suggested that it was important to continue talks between the parties. “It was clear that in the current stage of this process we cannot reach a solution but that we must continue this effort,” he told reporters after leaving a meeting with Syriza leader Alexis Tsipras. He added that “the vast majority of the country wishes to remain in the euro, an exit from the euro would result in mass poverty.” He also predicted a loss of real estate value and overall income if Greece were to exit the euro zone.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=98895