Golden Dawn

Jailed former Golden Dawn deputy leader, Ilias Kasidiaris, announced on Thursday he would will attempt to run as an independent candidate in the second Greek general elections that will likely take place on June 25.

The performance of two parties in particular that did not hold seats in the previous parliament was one of the major surprises of Sunday's general election, despite narrowly missing the 3 percent threshold to enter parliament.

The disciplinary board at maximum-security Domokos Prison, in central Greece, where former Golden Dawn official Ilias Kasidiaris is serving his sentence for running a criminal organization as a leading member of the neo-Nazi outfit, acquitted him or irregular telephone communications during a meeting on May 5. 

In working-class neighborhoods on the outskirts of Athens, Spiros Richard Hagabimana is going door-to-door in an election campaign that could see him become Greece's first black lawmaker.

The Supreme Court's decision to ban jailed former Golden Dawn deputy leader Ilias Kasidiaris' party from participating in the upcoming national elections is shaping a new political landscape.

Ilias Kasidiaris, a former Golden Dawn party MP, who was handed a prison sentence of 13 years, speaking during the Golden Dawn trial in Athens, October 21, 2020. Photo: EPA-EFE/PANTELIS SAITAS

The Supreme Court has ruled that the National Party, founded by the convicted criminal and former Golden Dawn MP Ilias Kasidiaris, may not contest the May 21 election.

A total of 36 parties and coalitions, as well as a single individual, will contest the May 21 election out of the 50 that had filed applications.

A section of the Supreme Court's Civil Division, made up of ten justices, decided that 14 of the 50 formations did not meet the criteria to take part in the election, for various reasons.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is in a "panic" to prevent far-right parties from contesting the 21 May election, Main opposition SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras has claimed.

Τhe Supreme Court will on Tuesday decide the fate of the National Party founded by the convicted criminal and former Golden Dawn MP Ilias Kasidiaris.