Out of bailout spotlight, Greeks feeling recovery pains at election
Greeks will head to the polls on Sunday to elect a leader who will have more control over the country’s economy for the first time in over a decade
By DEREK GATOPOULOS and THEODORA TONGAS
Published - May 19, 2023, 03:03 AM ET
Last Updated - Jun 21, 2023, 06:03 PM EDT
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — For the first time in more than a decade, Greeks will go to the polls Sunday to elect a leader no longer confined to steering the country’s economy from a back seat.
Conservative Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is seeking a second term after a draconian regime of spending controls ordered by international bailout lenders ended last summer.
The clean-cut Harvard graduate, as comfortable speaking in English as his native Greek, delivered unexpectedly high growth, a steep drop in unemployment and a country on the brink of returning to investment grade on the global bond market.
Debts to the International Monetary Fund were paid off early.
