President of Greece

2025-10-24T22:18:11Z

2A02:9130:8CAC:2D20:1871:87FA:9297:5E2:

{{short description|Head of state of Greece}}
{{for|a list of previous presidents and monarchs|List of heads of state of Greece}}
{{more citations needed|date=November 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox official post
| post = President
| body = the Hellenic Republic
| native_name = {{small|{{lang|el|Πρόεδρος της Ελληνικής Δημοκρατίας}}}}
| flag = Flag of the President of Greece.svg{{!}}border
| flagsize = 125px
| flagcaption = [[Flag of Greece#Flag of the head of state|Presidential standard]]
| image = KonstantinosTasoulas (cropped).jpg
| imagesize =
| incumbent = [[Konstantinos Tasoulas]]
| incumbentsince = 13 March 2025
| style = [[Excellency|His Excellency]] Mr. President (informal)
| seat = [[Presidential Mansion, Athens|Presidential Mansion]], Athens
| nominator = [[Hellenic Parliament#Parliamentary groups|Parliamentary groups]]
| appointer = [[Hellenic Parliament]]
| termlength = Five years,
| termlength_qualified = renewable once
| constituting_instrument = [[Constitution of Greece]] (1975)
| inaugural = [[Michail Stasinopoulos]] ([[Third Hellenic Republic|Third Republic]])
| formation = {{start date and age|df=yes|1974|12|18}}
| deputy = [[President of the Hellenic Parliament]]
| salary = €138,732 annually<ref>{{Cite web |date = 2020-01-18 |title=Ποιός είναι ο μισθός του Προέδρου της Ελληνικής Δημοκρατίας |url=https://www.brief.com.cy/oikonomia/ellada/poios-einai-o-misthos-toy-proedroy-tis-ellinikis-dimokratias |website=Brief|trans-title=What's the salary of the President of the Hellenic Republic?|language=el|access-date=2025-01-15}}</ref>
| status = [[Head of state]] [[Commander-in-chief]]
| website = {{Official URL}}
}}
{{Politics of Greece}}

The '''president of Greece''', officially the '''president of the Hellenic Republic''' ({{langx|el|Πρόεδρος της Ελληνικής Δημοκρατίας|Próedros tis Ellinikís Dimokratías}}), commonly referred to in Greek as the '''president of the Republic''' ({{langx|el|Πρόεδρος της Δημοκρατίας|Próedros tis Dimokratías|label=none}}, ΠτΔ), is the [[head of state]] of [[Greece]]. The president is elected by the [[Hellenic Parliament]];<ref>{{Cite book |last=[[Hellenic Parliament]] |url=https://www.hellenicparliament.gr/UserFiles/f3c70a23-7696-49db-9148-f24dce6a27c8/%CE%9A%CE%91%CE%9D%CE%9F%CE%9D%CE%99%CE%A3%CE%9C%CE%9F%CE%A3%20%CE%9A%CE%9F%CE%99%CE%9D%CE%9F%CE%92%CE%9F%CE%A5%CE%9B%CE%95%CE%A5%CE%A4%CE%99%CE%9A%CE%9F%20%CE%9A%CE%A9%CE%94%CE%99%CE%9A%CE%9F%CE%A0%CE%9F%CE%99%CE%97%CE%A3%CE%97%202021_3_F.pdf |title=Standing Orders of the Hellenic Parliament |date=24 June 1987 |publisher=[[Hellenic Parliament]] |pages=146–147 |language=el}}</ref> the role has been mainly ceremonial since the 1986 constitutional reform. The office was formally established by the [[Constitution of Greece]] in 1975, but has antecedents in the [[Second Hellenic Republic]] of 1924–1935 and the [[Greek junta]] in 1973–1974 which predated the [[Metapolitefsi|transition]] to the current [[Third Hellenic Republic]].

== Powers ==
{{further|Presidential Departments (Greece)}}

The president is the nominal [[commander-in-chief]] of the [[Greek Armed Forces]] and occupies the first place in the country's [[order of precedence]]. Although the [[Greek Constitution of 1974]] vested the presidency with considerable powers on paper, in practice presidents took a largely ceremonial role; the [[Prime Minister of Greece|prime minister of Greece]] is the active [[chief executive]] of the Greek government and the country's leading political figure. The president's role was formally brought into line with practice by the [[Greek Constitutional amendment of 1986|1986 constitutional amendment]], which reduced the official powers.

== Election ==
According to Article 32 of the [[Greek Constitution]], the president is elected for a five-year term by the [[Hellenic Parliament]] in a special session at least a month before the incumbent's term expires. Voting takes place in up to five ballots, separated by no more than five days.<ref name="presidency">{{cite web |url= http://www.presidency.gr/?page_id=19&lang=en |title= President: Election of the President |publisher= Presidency of the Hellenic Republic |access-date= 17 February 2015}}</ref>

The first and second ballots require a [[supermajority]] of 200 out of the 300-person body, dropping to 180 on the third. The fourth ballot requires a [[Majority|simple majority]] of 151 votes. The fifth and last ballot is then decided by a [[relative majority]].<ref name="presidency"/>

== Oath of office ==
Before taking office, the president must recite an [[oath]] in front of the Parliament according to the Article 33, paragraph 2 of the [[Greek Constitution]]:<ref name="presidency"/>

{{blockquote|I swear in the name of the Holy, [[Consubstantiality|Consubstantial]] and Indivisible [[Trinity]] to safeguard the Constitution and the laws, to ensure their faithful observance, to defend the national independence and territorial integrity of the Country, to protect the rights and liberties of the [[Greeks]] and to serve the general interest and the progress of the Greek People.}}

== Succession ==
According to the [[Constitution of Greece]], in the event of a temporary absence of the president of Greece on account of illness, travel abroad or similar circumstances, the [[Speaker of the Hellenic Parliament|speaker of the parliament]] serves as acting president, and exercises the powers of the state president until the president resumes their functions, and in the event that the presidency falls vacant as a result of death or resignation or for any other reason, until the election of a new president. The most recent person to have served as Acting President was [[Ioannis Alevras]], following the resignation of [[Konstantinos Karamanlis]] due to the [[1985 Greek constitutional crisis|constitutional crisis]] in 1985.

== Official residence ==
[[File:Presidential Mansion in Athens.jpg|thumb|left|250px|The presidential Mansion in Athens]]

The official residence of the president of Greece is the [[Presidential Mansion, Athens|Presidential Mansion]], formerly the New Royal Palace, in central Athens.

== History ==
{{Further|History of the Hellenic Republic}}

The current [[Third Hellenic Republic]] ({{langx|el|Γʹ Ελληνική Δημοκρατία}}) was established in 1974 during the period of ''[[metapolitefsi]]'', after the end of the [[Greek junta]] which had controlled Greece since the [[coup d'état of 21 April 1967]].

On 1 June 1973 the then leader of the military junta and [[regent]] for the exiled [[Constantine II of Greece|King Constantine II]], [[Georgios Papadopoulos]], abolished the [[Greek monarchy]] and proclaimed himself President of the Republic. A staged [[1973 Greek republic referendum|referendum]] on 29 July 1973 confirmed the regime change, and passed a new [[Greek Constitution of 1973|constitution]] which established a [[presidential system|presidential republic]]. This attempt at [[Metapolitefsi#Prologue|controlled democratization]] was ended by Brigadier [[Dimitrios Ioannidis]]' overthrow of Papadopoulos on 25 November 1973. The republic and its symbols (but not the semi-presidential system) were formally maintained, but they were nothing more than a façade for the military regime. Lt. General [[Phaedon Gizikis]] was appointed President of the Republic, but power was in the hands of Ioannidis, who ruled behind the scenes.

After the fall of the junta and the return to civilian rule under [[Konstantinos Karamanlis]] in August 1974, the constitutional acts of the military regime were deemed invalid, and a new [[1974 Greek republic referendum|referendum]] was held on 8 December 1974, which confirmed the abolition of the monarchy. In the interim, Gizikis, remained in office as President. After the plebiscite, he was succeeded by the first elected president, [[Michail Stasinopoulos]].

A [[Constitution of Greece|new constitution]], promulgated on 11 June 1975, declared Greece a ''[[Presidential system|president]]ial [[parliamentary republic|parliamentary]] [[democracy]]'' (or ''[[republic]]'' – the [[Greek language|Greek]] δημοκρατία can be translated both ways). The first constitutional amendments were proposed by [[Andreas Papandreou]] in 1985, though dubious procedures triggering a [[1985 Greek constitutional crisis|constitutional crisis]], and they reduced the presidential powers, which were acting as [[checks and balances]] against the powerful position of the prime minister.{{sfn|Featherstone|Katsoudas|1987|p=28}}{{sfn|Pridham|2012|p=183}} The constitution was further revised in 2001, 2008, and 2019, and is still in force today.

=== List of presidents of the Third Hellenic Republic ===
{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! colspan=3|President
! colspan=3|Term of office
! rowspan=2|Political party
|-
! {{Abbr|No.|Number}}
! Portrait
! Name {{small|(Birth–Death)}}
! Took office
! Left office
! Time in office
|-
|- style="background-color:#EEEEEE"
! rowspan=2 style="background:{{party color|New Democracy (Greece)}}; color:white"|{{anchor|Stasinopoulos}}1
| rowspan=2 |
| rowspan=2 | '''[[Michail Stasinopoulos]]''' {{small|{{Lang|el|Μιχαήλ Στασινόπουλος}} (1903–2002)}}
| 18 December 1974
| 19 July 1975
| {{Age in years and days|1974|12|18|1975|7|19}}
| [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]]
|-
| colspan=4 align="left"| {{small|Writer and jurist, former President of the [[Council of State (Greece)|Council of State]]. Supported by [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]], he was [[1974 Greek presidential election|elected unopposed]] by the ND-dominated Parliament resulting from the [[1974 Greek legislative election|17 November 1974 election]] and following the definitive abolition of the [[Monarchy of Greece|Greek monarchy]] in the [[1974 Greek republic referendum|8 December 1974 referendum]], with 206 votes on the first ballot.}}
|- style="background-color:#EEEEEE"
! rowspan=2 style="background:{{party color|New Democracy (Greece)}}; color:white"|{{anchor|Tsatsos}}2
| rowspan=2 | [[File:Konstantinos Tsatsos.JPG|60px]]
| rowspan=2 | '''[[Konstantinos Tsatsos]]''' {{small|{{Lang|el|Κωνσταντίνος Τσάτσος}} (1899–1987)}}
| 19 July 1975
| 10 May 1980
| {{Age in years and days|1975|7|19|1980|5|10}}
| [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]]
|-
| colspan=4 align="left"| {{small|Jurist and cabinet minister with the [[National Radical Union]] and [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]]. [[1975 Greek presidential election|Elected]] by the [[1974 Greek legislative election|1974 Parliament]] on the first ballot with 210 votes against [[Panagiotis Kanellopoulos]].}}
|- style="background-color:#EEEEEE"
! rowspan=2 style="background:{{party color|New Democracy (Greece)}}; color:white"|{{anchor|Karamanlis80}}3
| rowspan=2 | [[File:Bezoek premier Karamanlis van Griekenland Van Agt in gesprek met Karamanlis, Bestanddeelnr 929-6548 (cropped).jpg|60px]]
| rowspan=2 | '''[[Konstantinos Karamanlis]]''' {{small|{{Lang|el|Κωνσταντίνος Καραμανλής}} (1907–1998)}}
| 10 May 1980
| 10 March 1985 {{small|(''resigned'')}}
| {{Age in years and days|1980|5|10|1985|3|10}}
| [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]]
|-
| colspan=4 align="left"| {{small|Prime Minister as leader of the [[National Radical Union]] in 1955–1963 and again as leader of [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]] from 1974. Supported by ND, the [[Party of Democratic Socialism (Greece)|KODISO]] and [[Communist Party of Greece (Interior)|KKE Interior]], he was elected by the ND-dominated [[1977 Greek legislative election|1977 Parliament]] on the [[1980 Greek presidential election|third ballot]] with 183 votes against seven other candidates put forward by minor parties. Resigned before the end of his term due to his falling out with [[Andreas Papandreou]] and the [[PASOK]]'s decision not to support him for a second term in 1985.}}
|- style="background-color:#EEEEEE"
! rowspan=2 style="background:{{party color|PASOK}}; color:white"|{{anchor|Alevras}}–
| rowspan=2 | [[File:President Ioannis Alevras.jpg|60px]]
| rowspan=2 | '''[[Ioannis Alevras]]''' {{small|{{Lang|el|Ιωάννης Αλευράς}} (1912–1995)}}
| 10 March 1985
| 30 March 1985
| {{Age in years and days|1985|3|10|1985|3|30}}
| [[PASOK]]
|-
| colspan=4 align="left"| {{small|[[PASOK]] MP and Speaker of Parliament, he substituted for Karamanlis following his early resignation.}}
|- style="background-color:#EEEEEE"
! rowspan=2 style="background:{{party color|Independent politician}}; black"|{{anchor|Sartzetakis}}4
| rowspan=2 | [[File:Christos Sartzetakis (1989) cropped.jpg|60px]]
| rowspan=2 | '''[[Christos Sartzetakis]]''' {{small|{{Lang|el|Χρήστος Σαρτζετάκης}} (1929–2022)}}
| 30 March 1985
| 5 May 1990
| {{Age in years and days|1985|3|30|1990|5|5}}
| [[Independent politician|Independent]]
|-
| colspan=4 align="left"| {{small|Jurist, famous for his role in investigating the [[Lambrakis assassination]]. He was supported by the [[PASOK]] and [[Communist Party of Greece|KKE]]. Elected unopposed by the PASOK-dominated [[1981 Greek legislative election|1981 Parliament]] on the third ballot with 180 votes.}}
|- style="background-color:#EEEEEE"
! rowspan=2 style="background:{{party color|New Democracy (Greece)}}; color:white"|{{anchor|Karamanlis90}}{{small|(3)}}
| rowspan=2 | [[File:Bezoek premier Karamanlis van Griekenland Van Agt in gesprek met Karamanlis, Bestanddeelnr 929-6548 (cropped).jpg|60px]]
| rowspan=2 | '''[[Konstantinos Karamanlis]]''' {{small|{{Lang|el|Κωνσταντίνος Καραμανλής}} (1907–1998)}}
| 5 May 1990
| 10 March 1995
| {{Age in years and days|1990|5|4|1995|3|10}}
| [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]]
|-
| colspan=4 align="left"| {{small|The [[November 1989 Greek legislative election|November 1989 Parliament]] failed to elect a President after three ballots, with the votes of the [[PASOK]] being split between incumbent [[Christos Sartzetakis]] and [[Ioannis Alevras]], leading to its dissolution and a [[1990 Greek legislative election|snap election]]. Karamanlis did not stand as a candidate during the first three ballots, but was put forward by [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]] after the election. He was elected by the new 1990 Parliament on the fifth ballot with 153 votes, opposed by the PASOK-sponsored candidate Ioannis Alevras and [[Konstantinos Despotopoulos]] of [[Synaspismos]].}}
|- style="background-color:#EEEEEE"
! rowspan=2 style="background:{{party color|Independent politician}}; black"|{{anchor|Stephanopoulos}}5
| rowspan=2 | [[File:Konstantinos Stefanopoulos 2000.jpg|60px]]
| rowspan=2 | '''[[Konstantinos Stephanopoulos]]''' {{small|{{Lang|el|Κωνσταντίνος Στεφανόπουλος}} (1926–2016)}}
| 10 March 1995
| 12 March 2005
| {{Age in years and days|1995|3|10|2005|3|12}}
| [[Independent politician|Independent]]
|-
| colspan=4 align="left"| {{small|[[National Radical Union]] and [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]] MP and cabinet minister, after 1985 leader of the breakaway [[Democratic Renewal]] party. Supported by the [[PASOK]] and [[Political Spring]], he was [[1995 Greek presidential election|elected]] by the PASOK-dominated [[1993 Greek legislative election|1993 Parliament]] on the third ballot with 181 votes, against ND's candidate {{Interlanguage link|Athanasios Tsaldaris|el|3=Αθανάσιος Τσαλδάρης}}. His [[2000 Greek presidential election|reelection in 2000]] was by the PASOK-dominated [[1996 Greek legislative election|1996 Parliament]], as a joint candidate of the PASOK and ND, standing against [[Synaspismos]]'s [[Leonidas Kyrkos]].}}
|- style="background-color:#EEEEEE"
! rowspan=2 style="background:{{party color|PASOK}}; color:white"|{{anchor|Papoulias}}6
| rowspan=2 | [[File:Karolos Papoulias.jpg|60px]]
| rowspan=2 | '''[[Karolos Papoulias]]''' {{small|{{Lang|el|Κάρολος Παπούλιας}} (1929–2021)}}
| 12 March 2005
| 13 March 2015
| {{Age in years and days|2005|3|12|2015|3|13}}
| [[PASOK]]
|-
| colspan=4 align="left"| {{small|[[PASOK]] MP and cabinet minister. He was [[2005 Greek presidential election|elected unopposed]] for his first term by the [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]]-dominated [[2004 Greek legislative election|2004 Parliament]] as a joint candidate of ND and the PASOK on the first ballot with 279 votes. [[2010 Greek presidential election|Reelected]] unopposed for a second term in 2010 by the PASOK-dominated [[2009 Greek legislative election|2009 Parliament]] as a joint candidate of the PASOK, ND and the [[Popular Orthodox Rally|LAOS]] on the first ballot with 266 votes.}}
|- style="background-color:#EEEEEE"
! rowspan=2 style="background:{{party color|New Democracy (Greece)}}; color:white"|{{anchor|Pavlopoulos}}7
| rowspan=2 | [[File:Vladimir Putin and Prokopis Pavlopoulos (2016-01-15) 02 (cropped).jpg|60px]]
| rowspan=2 | '''[[Prokopis Pavlopoulos]]''' {{small|{{Lang|el|Προκόπης Παυλόπουλος}} (born 1950)}}
| 13 March 2015
| 13 March 2020
| 5 years
| [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]]
|-
| colspan=4 align="left"| {{small|[[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]] MP and cabinet minister. The previous ND-[[PASOK]] coalition [[2014–2015 Greek presidential election|failed to elect]] [[Stavros Dimas]] in the first three rounds, leading to a [[January 2015 Greek legislative election|new election]], which was won by [[Syriza]]. Supported by Syriza, [[Independent Greeks|ANEL]] and ND, Pavlopoulos was elected by the new 2015 Parliament on the fourth ballot with 233 votes, opposed by the candidate of [[The River (Greece)|The River]] and PASOK [[Nikos Alivizatos]].}}
|- style="background-color:#EEEEEE"
! rowspan=2 style="background:{{party color|Independent politician}}; black"|{{anchor|Sakellaropoulou}}8
| rowspan=2 | [[File:Katerina Sakellaropoulou, October 2022 (cropped).jpg |60px]]
| rowspan=2 | '''[[Katerina Sakellaropoulou]]''' {{small|{{Lang|el|Κατερίνα Σακελλαροπούλου}} (born 1956)}}
| 13 March 2020
| 13 March 2025
| 5 years
| [[Independent politician|Independent]]
|-
| colspan=4 align="left"| {{small|President of the [[Council of State (Greece)|Council of State]] from 2018 to 2020, she was [[2020 Greek presidential election|elected]] on 22 January 2020, supported by [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]], [[Syriza]] and the [[Movement for Change (Greece)|KINAL]]. Upon her inauguration, she became the first woman to hold the office of President of Greece.}}
|- style="background-color:#EEEEEE"
! rowspan=2 style="background:{{party color|New Democracy (Greece)}}; color:white"|{{anchor|Tasoulas}}9
| rowspan=2 | [[File:KonstantinosTasoulas (cropped).jpg|60px]]
| rowspan=2 | '''[[Konstantinos Tasoulas]]''' {{small|{{Lang|el|Κωνσταντίνος Τασούλας}} (born 1959)}}
| 13 March 2025
| Incumbent
| {{Age in years and days|2025|3|13}}
| [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]]
|-
| colspan=4 align="left"| New Democracy MP, cabinet minister and [[President of the Hellenic Parliament]] from 2019 to 2025. He was [[2025 Greek presidential election|elected]] on the fourth ballot, after winning 160 votes of New Democracy MPs and independents.
|}

== See also ==
* [[List of heads of state of Greece]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
{{refbegin}}
* {{Cite book |editor-last1=Featherstone |editor-first1=Kevin| editor-last2=Katsoudas |editor-first2=Dimitrios K. |title=Political change in Greece: Before and after the colonels |date=1987 |publisher=Taylor & Francis|location = London & New York |language=en|isbn=9781000992144 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DR7QEAAAQBAJ}}
* {{Cite book | editor-last=Pridham |editor-first=Geoffrey |title=Securing Democracy |date=2012 |publisher= Taylor & Francis |location = London & New York |language=en|isbn=9781134975419 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VphdUZqvT7QC}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==
* {{Official website}} {{in lang|el|en|fr}}

{{Heads of state of Greece}}
{{Heads of state of the European Union member states}}
{{Heads of state and government of Europe}}
{{Greece topics}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:President Of Greece}}
[[Category:Presidency of the Hellenic Republic]]
[[Category:1974 establishments in Greece]]
[[Category:Heads of state of Greece]]

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President of Greece