Greek PM requests parliament's dissolution ahead of general elections

ATHENS, April 22 (Xinhua) -- Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis requested on Saturday the dissolution of the parliament ahead of the May 21 general elections.

He announced the news in a televised address to the nation, after making the formal request during a visit to President Katerina Sakellaropoulou.

The relevant presidential decree will be issued within the day and Greece will officially enter pre-election period, Greek national broadcaster ERT reported.

On Sunday, Calliope Spanou, professor of Administrative Science at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, who has served as Greek Ombudsman in the past, will be sworn in as the new interior minister, the government has announced.

A caretaker minister is appointed ahead of general elections, as the interior ministry is responsible for conducting the elections.

Moreover, government spokesperson Giannis Oikonomou was replaced by State Minister Akis Skertsos.

The ruling conservative New Democracy party won the elections in July 2019, and is leading in all recent opinion polls.

However, most political analysts agree that due to the way the Greek electoral system works, it will be difficult to secure a parliamentary majority in the first ballot.

If a second election round is required, it would be held in early July at the latest, Mitsotakis said earlier this spring.

The second round would be held under a different electoral law, which provides for extra seats for the winning party.