Three more resignations hit Maria Karystianou's Hope for Democracy party

Wave of resignations

On Tuesday, August 4, 2026, three prominent members of the Greek political party "Elpida gia ti Dimokratia" (Hope for Democracy) announced their resignations, deepening an internal crisis that has seen a steady drain of personnel since the party's founding just two and a half months earlier. Actress Katerina Moutsatsou, school psychologist and Political Council member Maria Ioannidou, and trade unionist Takis Kotsorgios all issued statements confirming their departure. Their exits follow the recent resignation and subsequent expulsion of the party's press representative, Thanasis Avgerinos, and come amid reports that dozens of other members, particularly from the initial organizing team in Thessaloniki, have either resigned or ceased active participation.

Conciliatory departures

Moutsatsou, who had been part of the party's Culture Team and appeared at its founding event in late May, struck a gracious tone. She thanked colleagues and friends, describing her participation as an honour and vowing to continue fighting for the ideals that drew her to the movement.

It was an honour to walk alongside worthy people who have vision and fight for high ideals, and I was lucky to have contributed with whatever abilities and knowledge I had to this effort.

She added that she would not stop fighting for the "dream" of democracy, freedom, and social emancipation, and wished strength to all in the struggle of a "wounded and weary society." Ioannidou, a close associate of party leader Maria Karystianou, also kept her departure low-key. She thanked members for their cooperation and expressed hope that the movement would achieve its founding goals, leaving open the possibility of future collaboration.

Today this cycle ends for me, but I hold only appreciation for all of you and I wholeheartedly wish the Movement to achieve the goals for which it was created.

Kotsorgios's sharp critique

In stark contrast, Takis Kotsorgios, president of the Panhellenic Network of Coastal Fishing Associations and a figure in the party's agricultural sector, issued a scathing resignation letter. He had recently hosted Karystianou in Messolonghi. Kotsorgios stated that he was not merely leaving the party but abandoning "an illusion regarding the violation of every notion of democracy within this political space." He accused the leadership of abandoning the principles of democracy, transparency, and accountability that the movement had publicly proclaimed, and claimed that after submitting his proposals on the agricultural sector, he received no further communication and was effectively sidelined.

I joined this party because I believed that the cry of society after the memorandum policies and the thousands of murdered people who were driven to suicide, after the impoverishment of the Greek people, the sell-off of national wealth, the surrender of...

The full text of his letter was not published in its entirety, but the excerpts made clear his disillusionment with the party's internal practices.

Party under strain

The successive resignations have raised questions about the cohesion and viability of Karystianou's political project. The party, which emerged from civic protest movements, now faces the loss of key figures from its cultural, political, and sectoral wings. Reports indicate that dozens of other members who participated in the initial organizational structure, especially in Thessaloniki, have either resigned or ceased active involvement. The departures come at a critical juncture for the fledgling party, which had sought to channel public discontent into a formal political force. With its leadership under pressure and its ranks thinning, the movement's ability to mount a credible electoral challenge appears increasingly uncertain.