Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras Expected to Announce Whether Greece Will

“He said he was forced to do so because a majority of Greeks wanted to stay in the eurozone, and this could not be achieved in any other way. The move to go to elections allows Tsipras to clarify things, and to separate his government from the dissidents”, commented George Sefertzis, a political analyst, in a note published Friday. The party will probably come apart at the seams, as Greek politics realign more clearly into pro-bailout and anti-bailout factions.

However there was a large-scale rebellion among members of his own ruling left-wing Syriza party as a third voted against the deal or abstained, accusing him of capitulating to unreasonable demands which will plunge the Greek economy further into recession.

A caretaker government would take over until elections are held, led by Greece’sSupreme Court President Vassiliki Thanou-Christophilou, who would be the first woman to serve as prime minister in Greece’s history.

Tsipras will also be calculating that he might get a better election result if polls are held before voters feel the impact of the steep tax hikes and spending cuts demanded by the bailout program.

Tsipras acknowledged Thursday that the bailout deal was not what his government had wanted. Mr Tsipras has insisted that although he disagrees with the bailout conditions, he had no choice but to accept and implement them.

The European Parliament may join the growing band of institutions involved in overseeing Greece’s third global bailout, following a request from Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras in a letter to the Parliament’s president, Martin Schulz.

Syriza is now expected to split.

Energy Minister Panos Skourletis said on Thursday “the political landscape must clear up”.

“The present parliament can not offer a government of majority or a national unity government”, Tsipras told Pavlopoulos during a meeting on Thursday night.

ATHENS – Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras announced his resignation on Thursday and proposed holding early elections.

That means it could receive the mandate to try to form a new government. After three weeks of negotiations in Athens, Tsipras managed secure a three-year package worth 86 billion euros ($95 billion).

This first tranche is enough to cover Greece’s funding needs for two months although some observers worry the decision to call the snap poll will slow down the pace of economic reform.