Akel unveils line-up for European parliament elections

Main opposition party Akel presented on Saturday the six candidates who will be on its ballot for the May 2019 European Parliament elections.

The six candidates are Larnaca MP Giorgos Georgiou, doctor Athos Georgiou, Turkish Cypriot academic Niyazi Kızılyürek, MEP Assistant Giorgos Koukoumas, political advisor at the European United Left/Nordic Green Left (GUE/NGL) Marina Nicolaou and incumbent MEP Neoklis Sylikiotis.

Presenting the six candidates, Akel Secretary General Andros Kyprianou said the ballot is “bold and powerful” and includes candidates who “have the experience, knowledge and energy necessary to become the voice of the Cypriot people in Europe.”

Referring to the inclusion of a Turkish Cypriot on Akel’s ballot for the first time he noted that Kızılyürek is not a member of the party but belongs to the left.

“He shares with us the need to reach a solution of the Cyprus problem on the basis of agreed principles and not only,” he said.

“Reuniting our country, is a life goal for Akel,” Kyprianou stressed.

European elections are set to take place in all EU countries from May 23 to 26.

Citizens casting their vote will choose the 705 members to represent them in the European Parliament until 2024.

In Cyprus, the European elections for the appointment of six Cyprus MEPs will take place on May 26.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.