Greeks head to the polls for second time in a month to elect new parliament

The Greek voters are participating in a second round of parliamentary elections on Sunday, just over a month after the previous vote.

It is widely anticipated that the conservative party led by former Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis will secure another term in office.

Polling stations across Greece opened at 7 a.m. (0400 GMT) and will remain operational for 12 hours, with results expected to be announced around 1700 GMT.

In the previous election held on May 21, Mitsotakis' New Democracy party emerged victorious, enjoying a comfortable lead of 20 percentage points over the leftist Syriza party, which had governed Greece from 2015 to 2019.

However, despite New Democracy's success, they fell just short of attaining an outright majority necessary for independent governance. Consequently, a second round of voting was triggered under modified regulations that make it easier for the winning party to secure a majority in the 300-seat parliament.

Recent opinion polls have consistently indicated that New Democracy holds over 40% of the vote, while Syriza, led by Alexis Tsipras, lags behind at approximately 20%.

The final results of the election will determine the composition of the new Greek parliament and shape the political landscape for the foreseeable future. (ILKHA)