Austerity survives local elections

“All’s well that ends well,” headlines Ta Nea in the wake of the first round of Greek regional and local elections held on 7 November. Prime Minister George Papandreou had threatened to call an early general election or a referendum on his austerity package in the event of a defeat at the polls, but the daily notes that "the Socialist Party will remain in government, and there will be no early general election.” However, “the real upset in the election was the unprecedented rise in the level of abstention, which reached more than 40%.” Beaten by the socialists in seven of the country’s 13 regions, but winning in many major cities including Athens, the right, which “has adopted a more radical line,” has now “been reborn from the ashes,” remarks Ta Nea. At the same time, major gains were posted by the communist party, which upped its score to 11% of the vote — a breakthrough that sends a strong political message in the current period of crisis.