Greeks to vote in parliamentary elections in May as PM's popularity slides

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis leads a cabinet meeting at the Maximos Mansion in Athens, Greece, March 28, 2023. Dimitris Papamitsos/Greek Prime Minister's Office/Handout via REUTERS

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Tuesday called parliamentary elections for May 21, saying he wanted a clean slate to push through further reforms after four years at the helm.

But a deadly rail disaster last month as well as runaway inflation that has left many people struggling to pay their bills has stirred public anger, and helped to erode his New Democracy Party's lead over the opposition leftist party Syriza.