Greek PM Mitsotakis Denies Rumors of Early Elections

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Friday publicly dismissed claims that his government plans to hold snap parliamentary elections. In an interview with Open TV, he stressed that elections will not take place in the autumn, noting that his New Democracy party still holds a 14-15 point lead over the opposition.

Media reports had earlier suggested that Mitsotakis’ closest advisers recommended calling elections in September. The move was reportedly aimed at avoiding complications before Greece takes over the rotating presidency of the European Union in July 2027.

The government has been rocked by an investigation by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) into an EU farm subsidies scandal. EPPO has already charged several ruling party MPs and officials with submitting fraudulent subsidy applications worth millions of euros. Most of the cases are linked to Crete, where Mitsotakis’ family has wielded political influence for over a century.

Last week, EPPO charged four party members, including a former political secretary of New Democracy. The prosecutor’s office said it could not continue the investigation against seven other MPs due to lack of evidence, but it is still pursuing three former lawmakers.

Mitsotakis has stated that the fraud began in 2016, before he came to power in 2019, and criticized EPPO for dropping part of the investigation. He argued that the prosecutor’s office was interfering in internal party competition. At the same time, the prime minister affirmed that the government supports EPPO but reserves the right to offer justified criticism if it has made mistakes.