Mitsotakis locks in spring 2027 election, sees no path to coalition with PASOK or the right

Election timing and the EU presidency

Kyriakos Mitsotakis confirmed the election timetable, saying

elections will be held in spring 2027

despite having received suggestions for an early vote. He explained that Greece takes over the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union on 1 July 2027, and the country needs a government with a fresh mandate and full stability before that.

The country takes on a very important responsibility for which we are already preparing. Elections must take place before this important opportunity for the country to leave a discernible imprint on the European firmament,

he said. The prime minister also noted that, while he could constitutionally exhaust the term until July or August, the EU presidency compels an earlier date. However, he did not entirely shut the door, adding that concerns about the level of political dialogue and persistent toxicity weigh on him, and that he has received repeated advice to go early.

No prospect of coalition governments

Addressing the possibility of post-election partnerships, Mitsotakis made clear that no cooperation scenario appears viable. He said that PASOK under Nikos Androulakis had refused to find common ground even on constitutional amendments or appointments to independent authorities.

Right now, possibility of cooperation does not appear to exist,

he said, also dismissing any alliance with right-wing forces. He argued that the only thing uniting the opposition is opposition to him personally, and framed the political choice as

Mitsotakis or Tsipras, Mitsotakis or Androulakis, Mitsotakis or Karystianou.

He stressed that citizens elect both a government and a prime minister, ruling out any scenario where he would step aside to facilitate a coalition under another leader.

Responses to Karamanlis and Samaras

Mitsotakis pushed back against criticism from former prime ministers Kostas Karamanlis and Antonis Samaras over his handling of Greek-Turkish relations, calling their remarks

unfair.

He noted that both men had met with Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in office and had also sought functional ties with Turkey.

I am the only Greek prime minister who raised the issue of casus belli and said it to Mr Erdoğan,

he said. He also rejected the idea that former premier Samaras might launch a rival party, calling it unthinkable that someone would harm the party that gave him a second chance.

Managing tensions with Turkey and the Middle East

On foreign policy, the prime minister insisted that his approach of pursuing calm waters with Turkey is correct.

I don't know a prime minister who seeks troubled waters. A good captain shows in the storm, and we had many storms to manage,

he said. He described the ongoing Ankara-Israel friction as not new and primarily aimed at domestic audiences. On the broader Middle East crisis, he warned that fuel-driven inflation is feeding global economic uncertainty but hoped the flare-up would be temporary. Mitsotakis also underlined Greece's upgraded diplomatic capital and its strategic relationship with Israel, while noting that the country is present on all diplomatic fronts in the region.

Cost of living and domestic promises

Turning to domestic challenges, Mitsotakis acknowledged that the cost of living is the biggest problem European governments face and said he fully understands that part of Greek society is struggling. He attributed the recent inflation spike to fuel prices, made worse in Greece by higher fuel taxes. Further support measures would be announced at the Thessaloniki International Fair, he indicated. On other matters, he accepted responsibility only for the delay in reforms at the agricultural payments agency OPEKEPE, dismissed questions on the wiretapping scandal by saying the case is before the courts, and expressed shock at a televised documentary about the Syriza era.