Kaklamanis elected new speaker of Parliament

Veteran conservative MP Nikitas Kaklamanis has been elected as the new speaker of Parliament with 247 votes. Out of 297 MPs who participated in the vote, 50 chose to vote “present.”

Kaklamanis’ election was supported by lawmakers from the ruling New Democracy, the PASOK socialists, and the leftist SYRIZA, as well as by the nationalist Greek Solution and Spartiates parties, along with the majority of independent MPs. The 50 MPs who voted “present” included members of the Greek Communist Party (KKE), the religious-nationalist Niki party, the minor New Left party, and the populist left-wing Course of Freedom.

Three MPs were absent from the vote: Niki leader Dimitris Natsios, Niki MP Nikos Vrettos, and independent MP Rallia Christidou.

Following the announcement of the results, Kaklamanis addressed the chamber in his new role as Speaker.

“Your vote has once again united Parliament, almost from end to end,” he said, expressing gratitude to Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, his fellow MPs, and his voters.

“My entire political journey is sealed today, completing a cycle I have lived and acted upon, guided by an unwavering code of values,” he added.

Kaklamanis will succeed Konstantinos Tasoulas, who stepped down from the position to take office as the new president of the Republic. Tasoulas’ five-year term will officially begin in March.

At 78, Kaklamanis brings decades of political experience to the role. First elected to Parliament in 1990, he served as a deputy speaker since 2015. Between 1994 and 1999, he represented Greece in the European Parliament before returning to the national Parliament in 2000. In 2006, he stepped down to run successfully for mayor of Athens, a position he held until his defeat in 2010. He re-entered Parliament in 2012 and has remained an MP ever since.

Source: pagenews.gr