Political parties

The surveillance of Koukakis' phone turned out to be the tip of an iceberg whose scale only began emerging last summer, as the government of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was swamped with claims that it had spied on the phones of journalists, opposition politicians, oligarchs and top state officials.

The Municipality of Athens has imposed a 15,900-euro fine on radical leftist party MeRA25 over illegal posters and pre-election leaflets.

It said the services of the municipality on Friday found election posters on Panepistimiou, Akadimias, Ippokratous and Rigas Feraiou streets, but also leaflets strewn. "It is the first time that such a fine has been imposed," the municipality said.

The chairman of Bulgarian Socialist Party Kornelia Ninova announced on the sidelines of parliament that the parliamentary group will submit a draft decision on removing the immunity of GERB leader Boyko Borissov.

A total of 32 parties, coalitions and independents have been given the green light to contest the June 25 general election, following a decision by the Supreme Court on Thursday evening.

The names of the electoral entities are (in alphabetical order):

A new poll has predicted a seven-party Parliament while giving New Democracy a strong lead over SYRIZA.

Electoral campaign billboards in Montenegrin capital Podgorica. Photo: BIRN/Samir Kajosevic

Since then the small Adriatic country has endured almost constant political turbulence and two governments have been ousted.

Podgorica-based University professor Predrag Zenovic said there are expectations that the elections could herald an end to the turmoil.

After the unexpected success of the opposition march last Sunday in Warsaw, which put a record half a million people on the streets of the capital according to the organisers, democratic political parties seeking to defeat PiS in the general election are feeling emboldened.

Ilias Kasidiaris, the former MP for the far-right Golden Dawn party, cannot stand as a candidate in the June 25 election, Greece's Supreme Court has ruled.

Kasidiaris and the party he founded, National Party-Greeks, had been banned from taking part in the previous national election, on May 21, because of a law targeting convicted Golden Dawn ex-MPs.

Despite the post-election arrogance displayed by some cadres - which could cost New Democracy the absolute majority it is aiming for and was quickly nipped in the bud by its leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis - the conservatives will win the June 25 election too, and again with a lead so significant over the second party that no one could have imagined or predicted it a few weeks ago.

The WCC-DB coalition asked Delyan Peevski to leave the Commission on Constitutional Affairs only a day after he was elected to it yesterday.