A monumental moment in Greek politics happened Friday when Vassiliki Thanou, president of the country’s Supreme Court, was sworn in as the first female prime minister in the nation’s history. The 65-year-old justice was named to head a caretaker government until the country holds early elections next month.
A monumental moment in Greek politics happened Friday when Vassiliki Thanou, president of the country’s Supreme Court, was sworn in as the first female prime minister in the nation’s history. The 65-year-old justice was named to head a caretaker government until the country holds early elections next month.
The snap election follows the resignation of Alexis Tsipras last week. After just seven months in office, he faced a rebellion in his radical left Syriza party led by Lafazanis over the austerity terms he agreed to with the European Union in order to secure Greece’s third international bailout.
Syriza hard-liners were up in arms over the deal that demanded even harsher spending cuts and tax hikes than those Tsipras vowed to abolished when he was elected in January. The deal was approved with support from pro-European opposition parties, who now accuse him of rushing to call elections before voters are hit by the full force of the new tax measures.
Thanou’s next move will be to appoint a Cabinet that will be sworn in and confirm the election date. Thanou is a critic of the European bailout program in Greece, according to The Telegraph newspaper in Britain.
