After a long but mostly intense election campaign, today is the first round of presidential elections to elect a new president. Republic of Cyprus.

Despite the crowd of candidates – for the first time the number reaches 14 -, the three main candidates vying for a ticket to the second round of elections on February 12 are the President of the Democratic Alert (DISY) Averof Neofitou, a diplomat and an independent candidate who is supported by the Party of the Left (AKEL) Andreas Mavroyiannis , and the former foreign minister of the Anastasiades administration, Nikos Christodoulidis, who, despite running as an independent candidate, is officially supported by the intermediary cosmos parties, the Democratic Party (DIKO), the Democratic Party (DIPA) and the Socialist Party (EDEK). The latter is considered, according to the polls, the favorite, maintaining a clear advantage over his other two opponents, who will reportedly be fighting for votes for second place.

Nikos Christodoulides

Darling

Nikos Christodoulidis is considered, based on opinion polls, the favorite of the elections, since in all dimensions without exception he maintains a clear lead over his opponents and at the same time positions himself as the winner of the second round, whether he faced Averof Neofitou or Andreas Mavroyiannis. Until December 2021, he was Foreign Minister of the administration of Nikos Anastasiadis, and during his first term he was a government spokesman. He managed to build a moderate profile as he diligently avoided clashes with opposition parties, which his critics interpreted as “fear of crumpling, coming forward” when scandals arose. This, combined with the very good network he has built with the media and journalists, has been of great help in his political advancement and his widespread popularity. It is no coincidence that during the reign of Anastasiadis he had the highest popularity figures, at the same time he managed to become the closest and most trusted partner of Nikos Anastasiadis.

During his tenure at the Foreign Office, he was criticized for downplaying threats to open Famagusta (closed Warsaw), while prioritizing imposing sanctions on Turkey for its provocations in the Cypriot EEZ. A move that provoked a reaction from a more progressive audience and mainly from AKEL, especially when high hopes for sanctions did not materialize. On the contrary, the policy of sanctions and the criticism he received from certain audiences that he was a hardliner on the Cyprus issue was one of the reasons that the in-between space rallied around him more easily. A close relationship with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was the subject of controversy, especially early in the war when he ultimately condemned the Russian invasion.

Nikos Christodoulidis advocates the need for a government of national unity. In the Cyprus issue, the Guterres Framework is being discussed with modifications and is looking for an active role for the EU. shake the question. In the economy, he puts forward the slogan “we do not play with the economy”, promotes tax transformation and the solution to the problem of accuracy with targeted financial support for vulnerable segments of the population. With regard to immigration, he put the creation of a deputy ministry of immigration as the first step.

If the polls are correct, Nikos Christodoulidis will become the first candidate who, despite not being officially supported by either of the two major parties (AKEL-DISY), manages to either make it to the second round or be elected. This is because, due to the close relationship he had with Nikos Anastasiades, combined with his emphasis on his alarmist qualities, he receives a large portion of alarmist voters and a small percentage of AKEL. There is already a feeling that this is the second disturbing candidate, who, surprisingly, was not affected by the scandals of the decade. It is no coincidence that throughout the entire pre-election period, Nikos Christodoulidis never concealed his alarmist identity, while emphasizing the need to rule with DISY. It helps to “lock in” this important percentage of the alarmist voters and make them doubt their vote for him. Of course, there is a strong concern in his headquarters about the cancellation of the results of the vote, since they recognize that their votes are free. This will depend on whether the two main parties manage to rally at the last minute, citing party patriotism. However, in the scenario of his defeat, Nikos Christodoulidis made it clear that he would not create a party and leave the political scene.

Averof Neophytou

The former foreign minister managed to maintain moderate authority by carefully avoiding clashes with opposition parties.

Averof Neofitou is the only leader of the party, along with the leader of the far-right ELAM, to participate in the elections. He succeeded – without a rival – Nikos Anastasiadis as President of DISY when the latter was elected President of the Republic in 2013. He is officially supported only by his party, with little input from other mid-level parties as well as from ELAM. .

According to opinion polls, he is reportedly in contention for the second-place vote and, by extension, a ticket to the second round. He is said to be paying the price for a decade of Anastasiades’ rule, as well as for standing before controversial memorandum bills. His negative image in a significant part of society is determined by the qualitative characteristics presented in the polls. He certainly has to come to terms with the fact that he is running as a candidate at a time when the influence of parties is waning and the international community is looking for individuals who do not adhere to hard party lines. He failed to fully win the trust of the alarmist audience, as a result of which today it became clear that the party was divided between his candidacy and the candidacy of the also alarmist Nikos Christodoulidis. The fact that President Anastasiadis continued to speak positively of his “close associate” Nikos Christodoulidis for a long time also contributed to the confusion of anxious voters. To the extent that Averof Neofitov publicly urged him to dispel the shadows that in the background he supports his former foreign minister.

Neofitou stressed that Cyprus belongs to the West and condemns the Russian invasion. In the Cyprus issue, he has placed two “keys” which he says will “open” the impasse, and they concern security and energy. For security reasons, he recommended an immediate application for NATO membership, which he notes will mobilize an international actor to shake up the Cyprus issue. As far as energy is concerned, the solution, he argues, is a gas liquefaction plant in cooperation with Israel, not excluding the Cypriot solution of a pipeline to Turkey. He focused on issues of tax reform, while his rhetoric is now considered harsh on the immigration issue.

The goal of Averof Neophyte is the complete mobilization of the Democratic Anxiety. Such a thing provides him with a ticket to the second round, and also causes a serious injury to the dynamics of Nikos Christodoulides. In the event that Mr. Neofitov loses the election, he has already stated that he will remain in the political game, claiming the post of party chairman. He signaled that DISY would then be in opposition, shutting down governance scenarios with Nikos Christodoulidis if the latter is elected. Whether he is eliminated from the second round or loses the election, events in DISY will be fast-paced, since there are already its leaders who are openly interested in the presidency from the Right party.

Andreas Mavroyannis

Andreas Mavroyannis is supported by the left-wing party AKEL, as well as several contributions from the Ecological Movement. As a diplomat who served in major embassies, a former Director General of the Foreign Office and a Greek Cypriot negotiator under the Anastasiades administration, he is intimately familiar with the Cyprus issue and was a key player in the critical period of negotiations leading up to Crans Montana. He resigned as negotiator last April, noting that “without negotiations, there is no negotiator.” He even played a key role during the Cypriot Presidency of the Council of the EU. in 2008.

Andreas Mavroyiannis was the first to express concern about the new data in the closed city of Famagusta, publicly disagreeing with then Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulidis, and publicly dissenting when strong rumors emerged about discussions between the two states. Andreas Mavroyiannis’s critics, mostly from the opposition, ridicule the fact that he did not resign as negotiator when rumors of a two-state solution intensified and after the stalemate in Crans-Montana. Nikos Anastasiades’ decision to name him as his closest associate increased the discomfort of some AKEL voters who would have liked a more left-wing candidate.

Andreas Mavroyiannis, under the slogan “Change”, put a special emphasis on the restart of the Cypriot, highlighting the need for trust and highlighting the very good relationship he has internationally, especially with the GC. UN member Antonio Guterres, whom he says he will invite to come to Cyprus as soon as he is elected. He criticizes the government for a delay in the energy sector, suggesting imports of natural gas for domestic consumption, while emphasizing the environment, the precision sector and proposals to reduce VAT. Mr. Mavroyiannis also spoke in the area of ​​fighting corruption and confusion, promising that justice will be done and that he will demand criminal liability even for politicians, no matter how high they may be.

Judging by the numbers, Andreas Mavroyiannis seems to have rallied AKEL sufficiently – judging by the percentages he received in the 2021 parliamentary elections – however, in addition to the significant contribution of environmentalists, he was unable to confirm AKEL’s expectations that he would be in largely multicollector. He made it clear that if he lost, he would retire from politics. However, if he is expelled, AKEL is expected to face a difficult dilemma as it will have to choose between two troubling candidates.