Greece – AFP – 1/25/2015 – Radical left party Syriza swept to power in Greece on Sunday promising to end years of painful austerity policies, in an election victory that puts the country on a collision course with the EU and international creditors.
In a result that exceeded analysts’ expectations, Syriza and its 40-year-old leader Alexis Tsipras won 149 seats in the 300-seat Greek parliament, just two short of an absolute majority, with almost all of the votes counted.
The New Democracy party of Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, the former party of government, was routed and reduced to around 76 seats.
Syriza will become the first anti-austerity party to take power in Europe and Tsipras will be Greece’s youngest prime minister in 150 years.
He told thousands of flag-waving supporters in Athens: “Greece is leaving behind disastrous austerity.”
Tsipras repeated his vow to renegotiate the terms of Greece’s 240-billion-euro ($269 billion) bailout with the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, but struck a more conciliatory tone than during his fiery campaign.
An EU source conceded Sunday that an improved deal on the bailout would have to be struck with the new force in Greek politics.
“We will not escape a re-negotiation,” the source told AFP.
Eurozone finance ministers will have a first chance to discuss the result when they meet Monday.