MeRA25
European Realistic Disobedience Front Μέτωπο Ευρωπαϊκής Ρεαλιστικής Ανυπακοής Μétopo Evropaikís Realistikís Anypakoís | |
|---|---|
 | |
| General Secretary | Yanis Varoufakis |
| Founder | Yanis Varoufakis |
| Founded | 2018 |
| Headquarters | Gamveta 6, Omonoia, Athens |
| Ideology | Anti-austerity[1] Democratic socialism[2] Progressivism Pro-Europeanism[3] |
| Political position | Left-wing[4] |
| European affiliation | |
| International affiliation | Progressive International |
| Colours | Orange |
| Parliament | 9 / 300 |
| European Parliament (Greece) | 0 / 21 |
| Website | |
| mera25 | |
The European Realistic Disobedience Front (Greek: Μέτωπο Ευρωπαϊκής Ρεαλιστικής Ανυπακοής), or MeRA25 (Greek: ΜέΡΑ25), is a left-wing Greek political party founded in 2018. Its founder and secretary is former Syriza MP and Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis. MeRa25 is part of the Democracy in Europe Movement 2025 (DiEM25),[6] the European Spring and the Progressive International.[7]
Background
MeRA25 was founded on 27 March 2018 by former Greek Minister of Finance Yanis Varoufakis. The party was presented during a special event in Athens.[8] In December 2018 former Syriza member and MEP, Sofia Sakorafa, joined the party.[9]
The party contested the 2019 European Parliament election (as part of DiEM25).[10] It narrowly failed to win a European Parliament seat.[11] It gained 9 seats and 3.44% of the vote in the 2019 Greek legislative election.[12]
Name
Without capitalisation, the letters of ΜέΡΑ25, μέρα (mera), spell a Greek word for "day", mirroring Latin diem and thus showing the connection with DiEM25.
Positions
The party presents itself as an alliance of 'Left, Green and Liberal Greeks', standing on the grounds European internationalism, economic rationality and social emancipation. It plans to introduce a 'European Green New Deal', as a solution to the postmodern version of the Great Depression.[13] In Greece, its core 7 legislative policy proposals are:
- Restructuring the national debt
- Reducing primary surpluses
- Creating a public debt restructuring company
- The general reduction of tax rates
- Creating a public digital payment platform
- Converting HRADF into a development bank
- Respecting paid work and creative entrepreneurship[14]
Election results
Hellenic Parliament
| Election | Hellenic Parliament | Rank | Government | Leader | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | ±pp | Seats won | +/− | ||||
| 2019 | 194,232 | 3.44% | New | 9 / 300
|
 9
|
#6 | Opposition | Yanis Varoufakis |
European Parliament
| European Parliament[15] | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Election | Votes | % | ±pp | Seats won | +/− | Rank | Leader |
| 2019 | 162,328 | 2.99% | New | 0 / 21
|
- | #7 | Yanis Varoufakis |
See also
- Anti-austerity movement in Greece
- Civil disobedience
- Civil resistance
- Democracy in Europe Movement 2025
- European United Left–Nordic Green Left
- Syriza
References
- ^ "Greek conservatives win first post bailout general elections: first official results". Xinhua. 8 July 2019.
MeRA 25 (Day 25), an anti-austerity party founded by former Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis is estimated to receive 3.4 percent of votes and the newly founded Right-wing nationalistic Greek Solution (Elliniki Lysi) 3.7 percent of votes.
- ^ Nordsieck, Wolfram (2019). "Greece". Parties and Elections in Europe.
- ^ "Will MeRA25 bring the bright day that Greece has been waiting for?". Open Democracy. 29 March 2018.
MeRA25 is, as of this Monday, the only pro-European party in Greece that is proposing the end of austerity.
- ^ "Greece". Europe Elects.
- ^ European Spring Webpage (retrieved on 10 June 2019)
- ^ "Το όνομα του νέου κόμματος αποκάλυψε ο Γιάνης Βαρουφάκης | Kathimerini". Kathimerini. Retrieved 27 January 2019.
- ^ "Βαρουφάκης-Σάντερς ιδρύουν την Προοδευτική Διεθνή". efsyn.gr. Retrieved 27 January 2019.
- ^ "Έδωσε το στίγμα του "ΜεΡΑ25"". efsyn.gr. Retrieved 27 January 2019.
- ^ "Στο ΜέΡΑ25 η Σοφία Σακοράφα UPD". efsyn.gr. Retrieved 27 January 2019.
- ^ "Το ΜέΡΑ25 μπροστά σε ευρωεκλογές και εθνικές εκλογές". Η Εφημερίδα των Συντακτών (in Greek). 24 November 2018. Retrieved 17 February 2019.
- ^ "Χάνει την έδρα το ΜΕΡΑ25 του Γιάνη Βαρουφάκη". thepressroom.gr (in Greek). 28 May 2019. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ "MeRA25: a new Greek political party". openDemocracy. 13 March 2018. Retrieved 17 February 2019.
- ^ "Βαρουφάκης: Αυτά είναι τα επτά σημεία του πολιτικού προγράμματος του "ΜέΡΑ 25"". news247.gr (in Greek). Retrieved 27 January 2019.
- ^ "MERA25 | European parliament election – May 2019". ekloges.ypes.gr. Retrieved 27 May 2019.