Since the restoration of democracy in Greece in 1974, it has been an unwritten law of politics in Athens that former heads of government should avoid the spotlight and avoid commenting or giving advice.
However, for former leftist Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, silence no longer appears to be an option. He ruled Greece from 2015 to 2019 at the height of the debt crisis. Although Tsipras has kept a low profile in recent years, the former icon of the Greek left is now working on a comeback.
After several rumors, Tsipras finally confirmed that he intended to form a new party. In early October, he announced his resignation from the leftist opposition party Syriza. He remained their president until June 2023 and gave up his seat in Parliament.
In an interview with leftist daily media outlet ephemerida tones syntactic toneThe former prime minister declared that he wanted to “reorganize the progressive opposition, which cannot fulfill its role in society today.” In other words, he is thinking of restarting under his command.
A successful new start for Tsipras?
Political scientist Lefteris Kousoulis told DW that Tsipras’ departure represents the end of Syriza.
“Syriza is currently polling at less than 4% and would struggle to enter parliament if elections were held today,” Kousoulis said.
Tsipras said he now planned to “talk directly to citizens”.
This was also the case in the summer of 2015, when he and his finance minister at the time, Yanis Varoufakis, called a referendum against austerity measures and attempted to rebel against international creditors. However, in the end, they failed.
“Tsipras did the right thing then, but he was completely on his own,” Martin Schierdewan, leader of Germany’s left party in the European Parliament, told DW in the summer of 2025.
The conservatives who have ruled Athens since 2019 have a different approach.
“I am fighting to ensure that Greece does not again become the laughing stock of Europe – as it was when you ruled the country,” Conservative Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis recently told the leftist opposition during a heated exchange of votes in parliament.
“There is a huge void in Athens politics right now,” said political scientist Kousoulis.
He told that the opposition is weaker and scattered than ever before. According to surveys, this benefits not only conservative head of government Mitsotakis, but also leftist politician Tsipras, whose new party could attract up to 20% of voters.
Tsipras will not remain silent any longer
Tsipras’s memoirs are eagerly awaited throughout Greece. His autobiography will be published in November. Publisher Kostas Dardanos expressed enthusiasm on the business portal Naftemporiki.gr:
“All kinds of people have already talked about the debt crisis and given their opinions. Now it’s time for Alexis Tsipras, the hero of that era, to tell his side of the story.”
Tsipras reportedly also has a lot to say about former German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
And from now on, leftist politicians intend to comment on important contemporary issues. He had already shared his opinion on the presidential election in Northern Cyprus on 19 October: Tsipras wished “a lot of strength” to election winner Tufan Erhurman and spoke of his “hope for the resumption of peace talks” on the divided island.
Türkiye is the only country in the world that treats the northern third of Cyprus as the “Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus”. Greece, like all other countries, considers the entire island to be a unified nation: the Republic of Cyprus.
A popular right-wing voice in Samaras, Greece
The Greek-Turkish rapprochement with Tsipras’s blessing brings to mind another former prime minister: Antonis Samaras, head of the conservatives and head of the government from 2012 to 2015.
Over the years, the former prime minister has criticized Athens’ “appeasement foreign policy” and alleged “concessions” to all neighboring countries. He was angered by the Prespa agreement, with which Tsipras and North Macedonia’s then-Prime Minister Zoran Zaev signed in 2018, ending a dispute over the neighboring country’s name. A possible rapprochement between Greece and Türkiye is yet another thorn in Samaras’ side.
In late 2024, Prime Minister Mitsotakis pulled the emergency brake and expelled the notorious critic from the conservative New Democracy party. Since then, Samaras has begun to fundamentally criticize the policies of his conservative opponent.
“Greece is marginalized and absent on the international stage, as if we have abandoned our foreign policy,” he told the Athens newspaper. Taunt In May.
According to media reports in Athens, the formation of a “patriotic” party under Samaras’ leadership is only a matter of time.
Political scientist Kousoulis also said, “There is a lot to suggest that Samaras will form his own party.”
This will put additional pressure from the right on the ruling conservatives. Kousoulis believes that important foreign policy decisions will become more difficult, but probably will not be fundamentally questioned.
Thriving Crony System
There is still a question to be answered: As a rule, former politicians enjoy their retirement – or they look for a lucrative job in the private sector. So why are two former prime ministers in Greece currently eager to return to the political arena?
Kousoulis said, “If there were real internal party democracy in this country, we would certainly see new faces in high party offices.”
However, in the current system of nepotism, this is not so easy, said the Athens-based political observer. As a result, at least in Kousoulis’s view, Greece sees the old guard returning to the big stage with supposedly new ideas.
This article was originally written in German.