Just before the elections, British newspaper ‘The Guardian’ analyzes the Golden Dawn phenomenon and the way the far right party is now trying to adapt to the new circumstances, by putting on a misleading mask.

More specifically, the article mentions that, “replacing boots with suits, the party has sought to shed its menacing persona, fielding middle-class professionals in an effort to broaden its appeal”. The journalist goes on to add that among Golden Dawn’s 42 candidates are university professors, lawyers, surgeons, businessmen and a former Nato commander.

Giorgos Kyrtsos, a political commentator who is running as a Euro MP with the ruling centre-right New Democracy notes, regarding this change in GD’s strategy: “Golden Dawn is in a new phase of development due to Greece’s ongoing social and economic crisis. With the middle class determined to avenge the government for policies that have seen its living standards collapse, the far right has understood strong-arm tactics are no longer necessary.”

This ‘makeover’, as the newspaper characterizes the shift in GD’s strategy, offers an image far removed from the black shirted assault squads that have come to be associated with a party that is under investigation as a criminal organization. It should be noted that a number of the party’s leaders, including the party’s founder, Nikos Michaloliakos, have spent the past eight months in prison pending trial, after a crackdown spurred by the murder of an anti-fascist rapper.

The Guardian notes that the high percentages of the far-right party took analysts by surprise, making specific reference to Kolonaki, an upmarket Athens district, where the extremists attracted 13.7% of the vote.