The new election system to be implemented on May 21.

The system, which will be used for the first time in Greece this year in the general elections on May 21, removes the "bonus" application of 50 deputies to the first party, and envisages going to the polls again if a government cannot be formed.

There are 300 seats in the Greek parliament.

Political parties, alliances and independent candidates can participate in the general election.

Voters will also choose among the parliamentary candidates on the list.

Voters will be able to choose not only between the parties on the ballot papers, but also among the parliamentary candidates on the list of their preferred party.

Therefore, first of all, the number of deputies a party will get from a certain region will depend on the total votes it receives from the region. Then, the party's parliamentary candidates in that region will be ranked according to the number of votes they received. The priority of being a deputy will be determined by the amount of votes received.

“Bonus” deputy application

In the election system implemented in previous years, 50 "bonus" deputies were given to the first party in the general elections on the grounds of avoiding coalition governments and a strong power, but in the new system, this practice was abolished in the first go to the polls.

While the party that wins 151 seats in the parliament will rule alone, if no party can reach this number, the President will assign the leader of the party that receives the most votes to form the government.

If a government cannot be formed, the President will give the task to the leaders of the second and third parties with the most votes, respectively. The leaders will each have three days to form the government.

If a government cannot be formed at this stage, the President will bring all political party leaders together. If this process is also unsuccessful, the voters will go to the polls again with a temporary government to be established with the participation of all parties.

“Repeat” selections

In this election, which is called "repeat" instead of the second round, all party and independent candidates will once again take their places on the ballot papers, regardless of the percentage of votes received in the first election.

If the elections are "repeated", the "bonus" parliamentary seat will be applied. Accordingly, 20 bonus deputies will be given to the first party, provided that the vote rate is 25 percent or more.

For every 0.5 percent increase over 25 percent, one more parliamentary seat is envisaged. The first party will be able to receive a maximum of 50 bonus MPs within this framework.

Election threshold

Parties and independent candidates participating in the general elections must pass the 3 percent threshold applied throughout the country in order to enter the parliament.

The fact that this election threshold is valid not only for parties and alliances, but also for all independent candidates practically prevents independent candidates from entering the parliament.

Parties participating in the election

Those who will participate in the general elections in Greece on May 21 were determined by the decision of the Greek Supreme Court (Arios Pagos) on May 2.

With the Supreme Court's acceptance of 36 of 50 applications to participate in the May 21 general elections, 27 political parties, 8 alliances and 1 independent candidate were allowed to participate in the elections.

Surveys

The ruling New Democracy appears first in surveys conducted by research companies, followed by the main opposition Radical Left Alliance (SYRIZA). The third party most supported by the voters seems to be PASOK.