Greece’s Supreme Court has published the final list of parties that will compete in June’s European elections with the roster excluding the far-right party Spartiates (the Spartans).
The ruling party New Democracy, along with opposition parties PASOK and New Left, filed a memorandum challenging the Spartans’ participation. The far-right group has been under scrutiny as a result of their associations with convicted members of the now-defunct neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn, notably Ilias Kasidiaris.
The prosecution process has been started against eleven Spartan parliamentary members for potential parliamentary and electoral fraud linked to their leadership roles.
The electoral court has not yet decided on objections regarding the legitimacy of Spartan MPs, but in a unanimous ruling, the Supreme Court has stated that 31 out of 46 total parties will compete for voters’ support in the June 9 elections. It has been reported that 14 parties failed to submit the required 20,000 euro fee.
Earlier today, an MP elected with the Spartans was arrested after he assaulted a colleague from the populist Elliniki Lysi (Greek Solution) party in the colonnade outside the plenum hall.
Konstantinos Floros, now an independent MP, assaulted and punched MP Vasilis Grammenos. In addition to immediately evicting Floros under guard, Parliament President Constantinos Tasoulas gave orders that he should be immediately handed over to law enforcement authorities to face criminal charges in the assault of a member of Parliament.
He noted that parliamentary immunity does not apply in the case of violent criminal offenses. Floros is expected to be charged with violating Article 157 of the Criminal Code, according to which it is a felony to attack a member of Parliament during the performance of his duties.
Spartiates party in last year’s elections
The Spartiates party was the biggest surprise of the 2023 elections in Greece, getting 4.64 percent of the vote and gaining twelve seats in Parliament. The grouping was catapulted from relative obscurity after support from Ilias Kasiadiaris, the frontman of the now-banned Golden Dawn far-right party. His own party was barred from the elections, and he endorsed the Spartiates while serving his prison sentence.
The party believes the traditions of Hellenism are missing from public life nowadays. They describe themselves as “the iron arm and the real bulwark that will stop the decline and the sell-out of Greece and the Greeks.”
The Spartiates are among three fringe parties of the right that gained parliamentary representation after the elections. Elliniki Lysi, a nationalist, pro-Russia party, formed by former journalist and TV salesman Kyriakos Velopoulos, got 4.47 percent of the vote and is represented in Parliament with twelve MPs.
Niki, or the Victory party, which emphasizes Orthodox Christian traditions, got 3.71 percent and ten MPs.