Greek Solution: Greece's far right gathers steam before EU elections

Greece's far right is back in the spotlight after it made a sweeping return to the Greek Parliament after the 2023 general elections where ultranationalist parties garnered together 12.8 percent of the vote.

Greek Solution, along with Spartans and Niki, which are offshoots of the now dissolved neo-Nazi group Golden Dawn, are still gaining ground, according to opinion polls conducted ahead of June's European elections.

Founded by Kyriakos Velopoulos in 2016, Greek Solution won 12 seats in the Hellenic parliament last year, gathering 4.4 percent of the vote, and buoyed by the other two far-right parties, it looks set to continue its ascent towards the EU parliament.

Recent surveys compiled by Politico in April placed Greek Solution in fourth position with nine percent of voting shares, behind the governing New Democracy party (33 percent), the left-wing Syriza party (14 percent) and the centre-left Pasok (13 percent).

But some observers predict an even more favourable outcome: According to Georgios Samaras, assistant professor of public policy at King's College London and a specialist on the Greek far right, Velopoulos’ party could reach second place in the European elections.

Ultranationalist, ultraconservative and ultra-religious 

While all three parties are considered to be far right, Greek Solution is very different from Spartans and Niki, Samaras said. The public views Greek Solution as "mainstream", thanks to its leader Velopoulos, who “uses grassroots movements and local organisations” to bolster his image on the political scene.

“Greek solution is using the same playbook as other parties, which is a playbook that disconnects themselves of such labels as 'far right', 'radical right' or 'extreme right',” Samaras said.

“(Yet) Greek Solution aligns itself with the far right, espousing strong ultraconservative and ultra-religious perspectives. They have advocated against progressive policies, disseminating homophobic rhetoric during discussions on same-sex marriage, and amplifying conspiracy theories concerning migration.”

Close to the Orthodox Church, Greek Solution voted against same-sex marriage, which was legalised in February.

According to Samaras, “there is no doubt that GS (Greek Solution) is a far-right party, it's extremely ultraconservative and very religious”.

Inspired by former US president Donald Trump, Velopoulos uses the slogan "Make Europe Christian again" and campaigns against immigration, proposing to build a wall along the Turkish border to keep out migrants. He wants to reinstate the death penalty for people smugglers and send migrants to remote islands to await deportation.

Further down the polls is the Spartans party, at three percent. Founded in 2017, it maintains close links with the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party.

It grew in popularity during the general elections last year after Ilias Kasidiaris, ex-leader and spokesman for Golden Dawn, threw his support behind Spartans and urged supporters to vote for them.

The ultranationalist Kasidiaris, who was convicted by a Greek court which found Golden Dawn guilty of acting as a criminal organisation, is now one of Spartans' main advocates, and even its "natural leader", according to Samaras.

Some even describe Spartans as Kasidiaris’ "Trojan horse" after his new party, the Hellenes, were barred by the Supreme Court from taking part in the last legislative elections.

Meanwhile the Niki, or “Victory”, party, founded in 2019, is polling at four percent, having  built an election campaign around an anti-vax, homophobic, xenophobic and anti-abortion discourse.

Noting the Greek pollsters’ tendency to underestimate the popularity of far-right parties in elections due to the shy voter effect, when voters are less inclined to express their support for a party publicly, Samaras said Greek Solution is likely to win more votes than opinion polls have predicted.

Gaining momentum

Polling at 4.4 percent last June then at 9 percent in April, Greek Solution appears to be “the only party gaining traction and increasing their percentages at such a pace”, Samaras said, with  “a substantial portion of their support (coming) from disillusioned hard-right voters of New Democracy”.

“Velopoulos’ surge in polls seems to be rooted in three pivotal developments: Spartans is undergoing internal dissolution, Niki has adopted a markedly subdued approach since securing its initial seats in the Greek Parliament, and perhaps most significantly, New Democracy is grappling with internal discord – a trend highlighted by veteran pollsters Metron Analysis and Marc in mid-March,” Samaras wrote in an opinion piece published in the Greek daily Kathimerini in early April.

The Greek government led by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has only recently survived a no-confidence vote over the handling of the country’s deadliest train accident early last year that left dozens dead.

"The government has failed to find the right messaging [on the Tempe train crash] and that shows why again Greek Solution is capitalising on this," Samaras said in an interview with Kathimerini.

During the debate leading up to the vote, the leader of Greek Solution “made a striking appearance in the Greek parliament, delivering a passionate speech during the discussion of the no-confidence vote. His fervent address not only earned praise from far-right circles and media but also garnered strong acclaim from left-wing journalists”, Samaras said.

In many regions across northern Greece where the train crash occurred, Greek Solution is often the second most popular party, after New Democracy, recent surveys show. A trend which, according to Samaras, could become more widespread in the European elections.

"They could indeed rise to the second position in the election," Samaras forecast, adding that winning seats (out of the 21 seats allocated to Greece) in the European Parliament would help give the party even more clout at a national level.

Greek Solution currently counts only one member in the European Parliament – Emmanouil Fragkos, who is part of the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group that includes French MEP Nicolas Bay (Reconquest) and several MEPs from the far-right Italian Brothers of Italy and Spanish Vox parties.

Comprised of former Eurosceptic factions that have shifted further to the right, the ECR group also counts among its members “a significant presence of mainstream conservative politicians”, Samaras said.

Far from an isolated case, the rise of Greek Solution reflects broader trends within the far right across Europe, from the Netherlands to Italy, Hungary, Finland and Bulgaria.

Meanwhile polls predicting European election results in June show far-right parties taking first place in at least nine EU member states, and second or third place in nine others.

This article has been translated from the original in French.