Sunday May 30th 2021
Mood test for 2023
Conservatives win election in Cyprus
Last year, Cyprus moved into focus for the awarding of golden passports to non-EU citizens. In parliamentary elections, however, the citizens do not excessively punish the major parties. But the right-wing extremists are increasing – and a newcomer.
In the parliamentary elections in the Republic of Cyprus, the Conservative General Democratic Movement (DISY) won the race. After counting more than 98 percent of the votes in the small EU state, the DISY was able to unite around 27.8 percent (2016: 30.7), as the Cypriot electoral authority announced. The second strongest force is the left-wing AKEL party with a good 22.3 percent (2016: 25.7 percent).
Both large, established parties have therefore lost around three percentage points each compared to the previous election. The third largest party, the democratic DIKO, scored 11.3 percent less than in the previous vote (2016: 14.5 percent). The right-wing extremist National Völkische Front (ELAM), on the other hand, was able to achieve an increase of three points, which came to just under 7 percent. The newly founded Dimokratiki Parataxi (Democratic Front) party was also able to achieve 4 percent from a standing start.
The voters had decided “against irresponsible populism,” said DISY boss Averof Neophytou. Now the party will immediately roll up its sleeves and get to work – “to confirm those who voted for us and win back those we lost”. Many voters turned their backs on DISY over allegations of corruption.
The general secretary of the left AKEL, Andros Kyprianou, was visibly disappointed. His party did not convince voters that they could do better against nepotism and corruption than the conservatives. “We admit we could not convince that we are different from the other (parties),” he said in the evening on state television.
The award of so-called golden passports to non-EU citizens who obtained Cypriot citizenship in exchange for investments on the island caused scandals last year. Because of political involvement in the affair, even the President of Parliament had resigned. The result of the parliamentary election has no direct consequences for the government, but is considered a mood test for the presidential election in 2023. The conservative politician Nikos Anastasiades is currently president and leads the government in the EU country.
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