The surprise runner-up in Greece's May 6 parliamentary elections, Syriza, and leader Alexis Tsipras, pictured here on May 8 to 10, 2012 in Athens, found that his coalition talks have failed.
Syriza party is expected to increase its votes in a second election. The party had earlier declared the €130 billion European Union bailout dead in a letter to Brussels. Admitting that "we cannot make true our dream of a left-wing government," Tsipras acknowledged the failure.
They had tried to get Pasok and New Democracy to renounce the recovery plan they supported last year.
Antonis Samaras, leader of the conservative New Democracy party, who also already tried and failed to form a coalition, said pulling out of the loan would mean "Greece's exit from the euro and the country's bankruptcy."
Now, according to the Greek constitution, it is Evangelos Venizelos's turn to try to form a coalition. Venizelos is the leader of Pasok, the formerly dominant socialist party that came in third place during elections.
It is expected that Venizelos will fail as well; June 17 is being discussed as the date for a second round of elections.
Our contributor wrote:
The leader of SYRIZA Alexis Tsipras returned, after unsuccessful efforts, the exploratory mandate to form a government. According to the Greek Constitution Evangelos Venizelos, leader of PASOK and former minister of economics will have his try.