The Movement of Free Citizens (Greek: Κίνημα Ελευθέρων Πολιτών, ΚΕΠ), also known by its acronymKEP, was a short-lived, right-of-center political party in Greece. It was a personality-driven party, founded and led by Dimitris Avramopoulos. After resigning from the diplomatic corps in 1993, Avramopoulos began his political career within the conservative New Democracy. First a member of the Hellenic Parliament and then Mayor of Athens, Avramopoulos became one of the most popular Greek politicians.
In 2001, the conservative New Democracy party was suffering from many internal problems, notably the continuous conflict between its president Costas Karamanlis and the former Prime Minister Constantine Mitsotakis, and its opposition to the government of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) seemed ineffective. In this somewhat stagnant situation for the conservative right, Avramopoulos decided to step forward and create a party of his own. His personal appeal drove many new people by his side. However, it was clear that KEP's main asset was Avramopoulos' own charisma, who was attracting most of the publicity. Other famous people involved in KEP were Eliza Vozenberg, a lawyer who served as the party's spokeswoman, and the coronerMattheos Tsoungas. The first polls targeting the Greek voters revealed that KEP's percentage in an election would be as high as 24%, something extraordinary and unusual for a new party in Greece. In newer polls, though, the party's percentage went on a free fall, and much of the initial enthusiasm quickly faded away.
To his supporters' annoyance and surprise, in 2002, Avramopoulos unexpectedly terminated KEP's existence as a party, pointing at its financial shortcomings as an excuse. He announced that KEP would continue operating as a think tank, and this effectively marked Avramopoulos' return to New Democracy. Few of KEP's members opposed its president's decision and stated that they would continue working towards their political goals inside the party and without Avramopoulos. However, all attempts to revive KEP were unsuccessful. Most of the party's members followed Avramopoulos' return to New Democracy, few of them went to PASOK, while some others have remained politically inactive ever since, overwhelmed by disappointment.
movement, free, citizens, greece, this, article, about, greek, political, party, cambodian, municipality, cambodia, this, article, does, cite, sources, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged,. This article is about the Greek political party For the Cambodian municipality of Kep or Keb see Kep Cambodia This article does not cite any sources Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Movement of Free Citizens Greece news newspapers books scholar JSTOR December 2009 Learn how and when to remove this message The Movement of Free Citizens Greek Kinhma Eley8erwn Politwn KEP also known by its acronym KEP was a short lived right of center political party in Greece It was a personality driven party founded and led by Dimitris Avramopoulos After resigning from the diplomatic corps in 1993 Avramopoulos began his political career within the conservative New Democracy First a member of the Hellenic Parliament and then Mayor of Athens Avramopoulos became one of the most popular Greek politicians Movement of Free Citizens Kinhma Eley8erwn Politwn Kinima Eleftheron PolitonFounderDimitris AvramopoulosFounded2001Dissolved2002Split fromNew DemocracyIdeologyLiberal conservatism LiberalismCentrismPro EuropeanismPolitical positionCentre rightPolitics of GreecePolitical partiesElections In 2001 the conservative New Democracy party was suffering from many internal problems notably the continuous conflict between its president Costas Karamanlis and the former Prime Minister Constantine Mitsotakis and its opposition to the government of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement PASOK seemed ineffective In this somewhat stagnant situation for the conservative right Avramopoulos decided to step forward and create a party of his own His personal appeal drove many new people by his side However it was clear that KEP s main asset was Avramopoulos own charisma who was attracting most of the publicity Other famous people involved in KEP were Eliza Vozenberg a lawyer who served as the party s spokeswoman and the coroner Mattheos Tsoungas The first polls targeting the Greek voters revealed that KEP s percentage in an election would be as high as 24 something extraordinary and unusual for a new party in Greece In newer polls though the party s percentage went on a free fall and much of the initial enthusiasm quickly faded away To his supporters annoyance and surprise in 2002 Avramopoulos unexpectedly terminated KEP s existence as a party pointing at its financial shortcomings as an excuse He announced that KEP would continue operating as a think tank and this effectively marked Avramopoulos return to New Democracy Few of KEP s members opposed its president s decision and stated that they would continue working towards their political goals inside the party and without Avramopoulos However all attempts to revive KEP were unsuccessful Most of the party s members followed Avramopoulos return to New Democracy few of them went to PASOK while some others have remained politically inactive ever since overwhelmed by disappointment See also editPolitics of Greece Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Movement of Free Citizens Greece amp oldid 989472955, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
