H E L L A S    V O T E S

V A T H Y

Through the afternoon the Voting Booths get a little quiet while the community sleeps.

S T A V R O S

Volunteers who are selected at random from each village devote their day to the Election process.  Polls open from sunrise to sunset. Lots of coffee for everyone.     

P L A T R I T H I A S

With the Election, there's a party atmosphere around Ithaki.  Everyone is hoping their party of choice will be victorious. Passion for politics really runs riot after the first results come in.  The good, the bad, the disappointed and the victorious, the 'pissed off' and the resigned will be out in the streets and the Cafes venting their frustrations and joy till the early hours of the morning.

K I O N I O N

When the Booths close, the Parties release the Exit Polls. The Kafenios are full, the Tvs are on and Greece laps up early speculations. 

and the winner is….NEW DEMOCRACY PARTY

The main Parties are of course PASOK and the

NEW DEMOCRACY, but there is no shortage of the smaller contender. KKE, the Communist Party for example, is still a popular choice for some of the staunch and  older generation on the Island, and it definitely wins the prize for the most extensive publicity run. "Comrade, climb that mountain and hang a ten foot banner  from the Mobile Phone tower."   

Party propaganda is of little use on an island where voting is a family tradition, a heritage  passed on through the decades like hair colour and size of teeth. 

The Exit Polls show The New Democracy Party with a 5--6 % lead at the outset.  Within 2 hours Papandraios graciously admits defeat and Karamanlis, his wife and entourage thank the country for choosing 'the new way' ahead.  By 10pm the wishful thinkers resigned themselves to the fact  that Pasok would not miraculously pull itself out of the landslide against them.  The Pasok era is over for the time being.

The street noise resembles New Years Eve as cars blow their horns, sing Party songs and cheer their lungs out. The jubilation of the winners resounds through the streets of Ithaki.     

ITHAKI FIGURES

VATHY--still waiting

STAVROS--

PASOK--111

NEW DEMOCRACY- 114,

KKE--39

COALITION PARTY--15

EXOGHI--

PASOK--19

NEW DEMOCRACY- 12

KKE--9

COALITION PARTY--1

DHKKI--1

PLATRITHIA--

PASOK--58

NEW DEMOCRACY- 130

KKE--13

COALITION PARTY--16

DHKKI--3

LEFKI--

PASOK--34

NEW DEMOCRACY- 19

KKE--9

ANOGHI--

PASOK--21

NEW DEMOCRACY- 10

KKE--23

KIONI--

PASOK--80

NEW DEMOCRACY- 54

KKE--26

COALITION PARTY--23

DHKKI--3

LEFKO- 1

MERA--3

PERAHORI-- still waiting

ANOGHI-- still waiting

Greece follows the trend being set by the rest of the modern world and elects 'The Right'.

It will be an interesting year.  An EU Greece, the Olympics and a new Government 

Back to work

THE WINNER

GOODBYE

Mr. Karamanlis, Leader of the

New Democracy Party