Syriza wins Greek vote with a projected 35.5%

Conservative New Democracy party comes in second with 28%, Nazi-inspired Golden Dawn third with 7.1%

By Elena Becatoros and DEMETRIS NELLAS 21 September 2015, 12:41 am

Edit

Leader of the left-wing Syriza party Alexis Tsipras shakes hands with a supporter as he arrives at the headquarters of his party in Athens, Sunday, Sept. 20, 2015. (AP Photo/Fotis Plegas G.)

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — The official projection of final results in Greece’s early election shows the left-wing Syriza party of former Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras winning with 35.5 percent, but falling short of enough parliamentary seats to form a government on its own.

Syriza’s rival, the conservative New Democracy party, was projected in second place with 28 percent in Sunday’s vote, while the Nazi-inspired Golden Dawn was coming in third with 7.1 percent.

New Democracy head Vangelis Meimarakis earlier conceded defeat and called for a government to be formed quickly.

A total of eight parties appeared set to win parliamentary seats, including Syriza’s former governing coalition partner, the small nationalist Independent Greeks. The new anti-bailout Popular Unity party, formed by rebel Syriza members who objected to Tsipras’s agreement to a third bailout for Greece were projected as falling just shy of the 3 percent threshold for parliamentary seats.