Greek radical left wins election, threatening market turmoil

[Valin]

AP:

ELENA BECATOROS, NICHOLAS PAPHITIS and DEMETRIS NELLAS

Jan. 25 2015

 

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — A radical left-wing party vowing to end Greece's painful austerity program won a historic victory in Sunday's parliamentary elections, setting up a showdown with the country's international creditors that could shake the eurozone.

Alexis Tsipras, leader of the communist-rooted Syriza party, immediately promised to end the "five years of humiliation and pain" that Greece has endured since an international bailout saved it from bankruptcy in 2010.

With 92 percent of polling stations counted, Syriza had 36.3 percent versus 27.8 percent for Prime Minister Antonis Samaras' conservatives.

 

It remained to be seen whether Syriza had enough seats to govern outright or would have to seek support from other parties. That might not become clear until Monday morning or later, when all the votes are counted.

If Tsipras, 40, can put together a government, he will be Greece's youngest prime minister in 150 years, while Syriza would be the first radical left party to ever govern the country.

 

The prospect of an anti-bailout government coming to power in Greece has sent jitters through the financial world, reviving fears of a Greek bankruptcy that could reverberate across the eurozone.

He won on promises to demand debt forgiveness and renegotiate the terms of Greece's 240 billion euro ($270 billion) bailout, which has kept the debt-ridden country afloat since mid-2010

 

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More at The Daily Mail

[Valin]

Of Course this means THE END OF THE WORLD or something...I guess....

[clearvision]

@Valin

 

The people have spoken! Give us free stuff, retirement at 50, cancel all our debts to other countries and 21 weeks vacation a year!

 

Gambling on rest of EU/world considering them too big to fail?

[Valin]

@Valin

 

The people have spoken! Give us free stuff, retirement at 50, cancel all our debts to other countries and 21 weeks vacation a year!

 

Gambling on rest of EU/world considering them too big to fail?

 

 

That's pretty much it. IMO freely given and worth almost that much) Germany, France may very well tell Greece to go pound sand....You're on your owe. I f they give in to Greece, next come Spain, Italy, Portugal.

[clearvision]

* Euro hits 11-year low in knee-jerk reaction to Greece vote

* Greek results stoke concerns of instability in Europe

* U.S stock futures down 0.6 pct, U.S 30-yr yield hits record low

[NCTexan]

I had not paid attention to the full membership of the EU in a while... I'm surprised at all the central European membership.

 

What a mix of the extreme left like Greece now... emerging markets like Bulgaria... socialist and more traditional.

 

List of EU Countries

[Valin]

I had not paid attention to the full membership of the EU in a while... I'm surprised at all the central European membership.

 

What a mix of the extreme left like Greece now... emerging markets like Bulgaria... socialist and more traditional.

 

List of EU Countries

 

 

Something I posted at TOS many years ago (that stuck in my head) "The EU is based on the ridiculous notion the Denmark and Greece have anything in common, other that they both inhabit the same continent." The EU is a wonderful idea...The United States of Europe, but its artificial...top down, unlike America. At least that's how I see it.

[Valin]

Q&A: Meet the Party That, By Promising Greeks End of Austerity Measures, Won the Election

Luke Coffey

January 26, 2015

 

What was the outcome of the Greek election over the weekend and why were these elections important?

 

The recent elections in Greece have sent shockwaves across Europe. A far-leftwing party, The Coalition of the Radical Left, commonly known as Syriza, won the most seats but not enough seats for an absolute majority.

 

Within hours Syriza formed a small coalition with the right-wing Independent Greeks. It is also worth pointing out that the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party came in third place.

 

In terms of the future of the eurozone and European integration these elections were historical. The future of Greece in the eurozone and the pace at which economic and political integration in Europe will take place is at stake.

 

Why is Syriza so popular and what did it promise the Greek people?

 

Basically, Syriza branded itself as the anti-austerity party. During the elections it adopted populist policies that make for good campaign posters but not responsible government. For example, one of its key policies is raising minimum monthly salaries from €580 to €751. But in the current economic climate this is hardly possible.

 

Most importantly, Syriza promised an end to austerity measures. It has also pledged to re-negotiate the terms of the multiple bailouts Greece has received in the past few years with the hope to delay debt repayments or even have the some of the debt written off.

 

How will the rest of Europe respond? Does this mean that Greece might leave the eurozone?

 

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