Greece's mainstream parties may defeat a radical leftist leader whose policies could force the country out of the euro, but victory in the election on June 17 is unlikely to be conclusive and another vote may be on the horizon.
The upstart leftist SYRIZA party is running neck-and-neck with conservative New Democracy ahead of the second national election in six weeks as Greece reels from a debt crisis that is shaking the euro to its core.
Even if New Democracy, which is currently slightly ahead in opinion polls, can form a government with support from the socialists and perhaps others, it is thought likely to buckle under the weight of the enormous task ahead.
"We are talking about postponing the inevitable for a short time," said political analyst John Loulis. "It won't last more than a few months."
Enraged with mainstream parties that have imposed the harsh cuts prescribed in the 130 billion euro ($162.03 billion) rescue deal from international lenders, Greeks overwhelmingly backed smaller parties, putting the radical left into second place in an inconclusive election on May 6.
SYRIZA has been telling Greeks that the European Union is bluffing when it threatens to cut off its aid lifeline unless Athens takes painful reform measures. Party leader Alexis Tsipras's pledges to nationalize banks and reverse budget cuts have led markets and international lenders to compare him to Venezuela's president, Hugo Chavez.
Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/06/06/us-greece-election-idUSBRE8550BB20120606
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