Alco poll: ND lead over SYRIZA at 6.6 percentage points

The latest opinion poll results, unveiled on Monday, give ruling New Democracy (ND) party a 6.6-percentage point lead over main opposition SYRIZA.

The poll, conducted by the Alco firm and presented on the prime-time newscast of Athens-based Alpha TV, has conservative ND preferred by 32.3 percent of respondents, compared to 25.7 percent for leftist SYRIZA. This week’s Alco poll shows rising support for ND compared with previous results by the same firm, and with a general election set for May 21.

In terms of other parties, socialist PASOK is given 9 percent; 6.3 percent for the Communist Party (KKE) and 3.7 percent for the right-wing Elliniki Lysi party.

A political party must exceed 3 percent of the general vote (of valid ballots) to be represented with deputies in Greece’s 300-MP Parliament.

In a departure from usual poll questions, the opinion poll firm asked respondents if incumbent PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his main rival, SYRIZA president and former prime minister Alexis Tsipras, should be given a “second chance”, with 37 percent of respondents answering in the affirmative for the former and 29 percent for the latter.

Finally, 76 percent of respondents said they agreed with this month’s decision by Greece’s Supreme Court to ban a new party established by jailed Golden Dawn deputy leader Ilias Kasidiaris from standing in the coming election. Conversely, 17 percent of respondents disagreed with the ruling, while 7 percent did not answer.