Kyriakos Mitsotakis chooses to draw comparisons, highlighting the work that has been done across all areas of policy.

Ever since he was leader of the official opposition, Kyriakos Mitsotakis has chosen to address citizens with the language of truth. He did not promise anything that could not be done, he did not hand out money during the election campaign, and he did not change anything in his campaign platform between 2019 and 2023.

And he did this despite the major global crises of the pandemic, the energy crisis, wars in the wider region, rising prices, and inflation. The trajectory of the economy, the country’s defense and diplomatic fortifications, its transformation into an energy hub and the start of work to turn it into a producer nation, tax reform with cuts to 83 taxes, the reduction in unemployment, the increase in the minimum wage, the 600,000 new jobs, the restructuring of the National Health System, and a series of many changes, breakthroughs, and reforms constitute a track record that allows him to invite citizens to compare his performance with that before the crisis.

A comparison with those who seek citizens’ votes with empty promises and handouts—with “money trees” and a complete lack of programs and alternative solutions. With all those who choose doomsday scenarios, populism, and the divisive “it’s either them or us” rhetoric—which is returning to the forefront amid the anxiety gripping his political opponents over their political survival and future.

Guided by the goal of creating wealth—that is, making the pie bigger—which brings investments and better-paying new jobs and with the aim of avoiding the curse of… post-dictatorship era—which led to the inheritance of previous generations’ debts by subsequent ones.

Kyriakos Mitsotakis chooses to make comparisons, knowing that this strengthens the foundation of the two-way relationship with citizens, which is trust. As he notes in his regular Sunday post, which this time was dedicated—on the occasion of the third anniversary of his 2023 election victory— to a review of the work accomplished from 2019 to the present “the consistency that links commitments to results that make citizens’ lives a little better every day is what builds trust”.

He outlines what has been accomplished, what is currently underway, and what is just getting started—and the result is concrete and directly comparable to what was accomplished by the first-term left-wing government —with a touch of the far right—of the (new) president Alexis Tsipras. Mainly with regard to the promises he made before being elected in 2015 and the actions he took after taking office, bringing the country to the brink of collapse.

The prime minister knows that the opposition will play its last cards. It’s already doing so, after all. He has warned both government officials and lawmakers who see populism seeking to make a comeback to set the political agenda. And it is certain that nothing will go unanswered. What it appears to be choosing, however, is not to contribute to a new attempt to divide the public.