ND conference and anniversary with traumas and expectations – 2024-04-07 23:53:59

In an apparently festive atmosphere and with (more or less obvious) injuries to the party’s cohesion, the 15th congress of the ND is expected to be held during the three days of April 5-7 at Zappeio Megaro.

His intention and apparent pursuit Kyriakou Mitsotakis is to counteract the recent crises, which have significantly damaged the credibility of the government and are also reflected in the findings of the polls.

In the wake of issues such as same-sex marriage, the lengthy debate over the Tempe crash and unfortunate political manipulations, the NDP leadership is expected to seek a reversal of the mood during the three-day convention. However, it is estimated – and emphasized by some internal party groups – that under the current circumstances, this political project of the Prime Minister and president of the ND will probably be difficult, in his attempt to convincingly and effectively declare the party’s all-arms, with the aim of an indisputable result in the European elections, just two months before the polls.

Internal party dysthymia

The assignment of Kyriakos Mitsotakis to this conference is in fact much more complex than the previous, corresponding internal party procedures. He may not be facing open challenges, but he is forced to deal effectively and convincingly with an apparent wave of internal party discomfort and disaffection, with multiple causes.

At the core of these attitudes are the government’s choices and handling of critical identity issues for the ND, as was seen with what happened during the same-sex marriage vote and the consequent friction and tensions with the Church.

In essence, the main goal of Kyriakos Mitsotakis at the present time is to revive the morale of a significant part of the party audience, which does not seem to agree with the modern choices of the government, and at the same time to manage the dissatisfaction of the more moderate, centrist audience, the which shows different elements of disappointment from the government, with the main reasons being boldness, the delay in the implementation of reforms and of course the accuracy, the lack of security, the multiple manifestations of violence and lawlessness, etc.

Under these conditions of “temperature and pressure”, one of the main objectives of the conference is expected to be the formulation of the dilemmas in view of the European elections. What has happened in the past period and, above all, the fact that only nine months after the last elections and essentially without a reliable political opponent, the ND shows such significant poll losses, lend a special weight to this party process.

Rallying efforts

The obvious aim of the party leadership at the first level is to highlight the political resilience of the ND, on the occasion of the completion of 50 years, on the one hand, from the restoration of democracy and, on the other hand, from the founding of the party. Equally obvious is the choice of Zappeion as the venue for the conference, in a reference to the signing ceremony of Greece’s accession treaty to the EEC by Konstantinos Karamanlis in May 1979.

As expected, the party’s adherence to European principles and values, its contribution to the country’s path as a member of the European communities, whether as a government or as an opposition, and at the same time the evolution of the ND and its political adjustments during of this interval.

In this light and given the circumstances, it is expected that in the interventions of Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the role of the ND as a factor of political stability during these decades will be highlighted.

In addition, in an effort to rally the party, it is expected that the political legacies of the 10 party presidents will be highlighted with visual material and special reports (in chronological order: Konstantinos Karamanlis, George Rallis, Evangelos Averof, Konstantinos Mitsotakis, Miltiadis Evert, Kostas Al. Karamanlis, Antonis Samaras, Vangelis Meimarakis, Yannis PlakiotakisKyriakos Mitsotakis).

The presence of Karamanlis – Samaras

An interesting fact in view of the conference is the fact that a week before it began it was difficult to plan fully and precisely due to, on the one hand, the traumatic debate on the no-confidence motion on the occasion of the Tempe accident and, on the other hand, the awareness that the moods of a the attitudes of a large number of citizens towards the party and the government have changed and manifest themselves as either detachment, apathy or even discomfort.

While Kyriakos Mitsotakis will attempt to reverse this climate and revive party morale, one of the demands of the conference will be the presence of former prime ministers Costas Karamanlis and Antonis Samaras.

The times of painless speeches and light-hearted party coexistence have passed and everyone, in their own way and for their own reasons, has distanced themselves from the choices of Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

As far as Kostas Karamanlis is concerned, it is confirmed by his environment that he will attend the opening event of the conference, but without making any intervention out of step.

On the part of Antonis Samaras, it is reported that he will also be present, but it is reported that he has not yet decided whether he will speak, as he has done in all previous conferences, either openly supporting Kyriakos Mitsotakis or distancing himself as the case may be.

At the present time, and with the political disagreements of the former prime minister with the government known and manifested, whether Antonis Samaras will speak at the conference and what he will say is of particular importance. As well as whether he will choose silence, with all that this may signal, in the first phase with the horizon of the European elections and, subsequently, for the period after them and depending on the result of the ballot box.