Polls: No Majority Likely in Greek Vote
Neither Greece's radical left nor their conservative rivals in upcoming elections to decide the country's economic future will win a majority, the last pre-vote opinion polls indicated Friday.
Three surveys for Greek media by pollsters RASS, KAPA and ALCO placed the conservative New Democracy party just ahead of radical left Syriza, which the polls also showed had gained the most support in the past week ahead of the June 17 polls.
The lead fell within the margin of error, however, effectively tying the two parties level and leaving the outcome uncertain as Greece awaits the next installment of international loans to keep it afloat.
A fourth poll by Public Issue gave Syriza a lead of six points over the conservatives, with 31.5 percent of the vote.
Overall in the four polls New Democracy's share of the vote ranged from 25.5 to 26.5 percent, and Syriza's from 23.5 to 31.5 percent.
These scores would oblige the winner to form a coalition with other parties to obtain a parliamentary majority.
Syriza, under its leader Alexis Tsipras, surprised Europe on May 6 by placing second in an inconclusive election that left no party in a position to form a viable government.
New Democracy came first and the former ruling Socialist party Pasok was third.
The June 17 election will determine whether Greece will complete reforms, including economic austerity cuts, tied to a multi-billion euro EU-IMF loan agreement that has so far shielded the country from bankruptcy.
Athens could be forced to leave the Eurozone if the reforms falter, raising fears for the future of the single currency.
New Democracy has defended the bailout plan but proposed to temper austerity measures with strategies to boost economic growth.
Syriza rejects the bailout deal altogether but says Greek can still stay in the euro. The party saw a surge in support on May 6 as voters fed up with salary and pension cuts shifted their loyalties to radical parties.
Tsipras was to unveil his election program on Friday.
Friday's polls, the last allowed before the election, showed Pasok, which launched the austerity measures when it was in power in 2009, at a distant third place with between 9.9 and 13.5 percent.
The polls showed a decline in support for smaller anti-austerity parties, including the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn, which won nearly seven percent of the vote and its first seats in parliament on May 6.
Friday's polls indicated that support for Golden Dawn had waned to between 3.6 and 5.1 percent, still enough to retain a presence in parliament.