A POWWOW today between President Tassos Papadopoulos and communist leader Demetris Christofias could decide the outcome of next year’s elections.
Though both men have played down the high-level meeting, calling it part of their regular contacts, it is almost a given that the 2008 vote will be the top item on the agenda.
The incumbent has not officially announced he will be standing for re-election, but is widely expected to do so. Meanwhile, AKEL are considering nominating their man Christofias.
That a Christofias standalone nomination would necessitate a runoff is a foregone conclusion.
By contrast, only a candidate backed by AKEL, DIKO and EDEK would be able to get more than 50 per cent of the vote in the first round.
At the moment, the person most likely to head that alliance is incumbent Tassos Papadopoulos, not Christofias.
Papadopoulos, 73, already has the unconditional support of his own party DIKO and of socialists EDEK.
Yesterday, the President refused to be drawn into speculating on scenarios that are already doing the rounds – most importantly, whom he would back if he did not make it to the second round.
Instead, Papadopoulos chose to wax lyrical about Christofias, saying he held the utmost respect for him and that the two had an “old and strong friendship.”
However, the answer came from Christofias himself, who said he could not imagine that Papadopoulos would lend his support to a DISY candidate (in the second round), not after Papadopoulos has been so “vilified” by the opposition party.
The communists have already made it clear they will never support a DISY candidate under any circumstances.
But asked whether AKEL’s moves depended on what Papadopoulos did, Christofias dodged the question.
He said AKEL would hold a congress in July, where party members would vote on whom to back for the presidential elections. However, he added, the outcome of the vote was not binding on the party’s leadership.
It is generally accepted that the only chance DISY stands a chance in February is if the three-way government coalition is broken. A Christofias standalone candidacy would therefore be music to the ears of the opposition party.
Some opinion polls have shown that Christofias could edge out Papadopoulos in the first round.
It will be close. Together, DIKO, EDEK and the European Party should garner almost 33 percent of the popular vote. AKEL has about 31 per cent of the electorate, and DISY a little over 30 per cent.
The big question is, how will DISY supporters cast their ballot in the event their candidate does not make it to the runoff? Will they vote for Papadopoulos, which their leadership has maligned for the past four years, or for AKEL – which is barely palatable.
Former Foreign Minister and MEP Ioannis Kasoulides has been tagged as the likely candidate for DISY, but even his nomination seems to be in limbo.
Yesterday, DISY boss Nicos Anastassiades muddied the waters further, when he suggested that DISY was ready to discuss other names with the other parties, including AKEL.
Anastassiades yesterday tried to put things into perspective.
“Let’s be realistic,” he said, “As far-fetched as it is for Anastassiades to be supported by die-hard AKEL voters, it’s that much unlikely that hardcore DISY fans would vote for Christofias.
“If our policies converged after dialogue, then perhaps a third candidate [i.e. not Kasoulides] could be supported by the two parties,” he added.
Meanwhile the pre-election political thermometer surged over the weekend, after Michalis Papapetrou of the United Democrats accused socialist chief Yiannakis Omirou of double-dealing in the run-up to the 2003 elections.
Papapetrou claimed that Omirou had promised to back Glafcos Clerides, at least in the second round if not the first, only to about-face and join the Papadopoulos camp.
Anastassiades yesterday seconded the allegations, giving his own account of what transpired. He said that on October 1, 2002, a meeting was held between DISY and EDEK leaders.
At that meeting, it was agreed that if Omirou ran against Papadopoulos, and barring any astonishing progress in the Cyprus problem, Papadopoulos would get 60 per cent of the vote.
For this reason, Anastassiades says, Omirou then proposed that if for any reason he should pull out of the race, he would go to plan B: support Clerides’ candidacy.
“Let them [EDEK] not deny this, there were many witnesses that day,” Anastassiades said.
Omirou yesterday said he would not “dignify” the allegations, dismissing them as “farcical.”
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