At a critical juncture when internal party dynamics have become increasingly fluid, Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ decision to expel “blue” MP Mario Salmas—delivered from the United States—sends a resounding political message.** It is less directed at Salmas, whose ongoing political dissent against key government policies was well-known, and more aimed at cautioning other MPs who might consider adopting similar behavior.
The recent controversy over the “Group of 11” questioning the government’s handling of non-performing loans further stoked tensions within the ruling party. Salmas, one of the 11 MPs who raised the issue, had initially signaled no intention of prolonging the matter. Instead, he intended to politically highlight a “rigged competition” favoring a specific company in a Ministry of Culture tender. Salmas brought this issue before the party’s Central Organization and received a formal response from Lina Mendoni in July. However, he revisited the allegations in interviews with Kontra and Open, keeping the matter alive.
Within Mitsotakis’ circle at the Maximos Mansion, Salmas’ persistence was perceived as politically motivated rather than a case of legitimate policy critique. The prime minister was no longer willing to demonstrate tolerance, despite an earlier confrontation with Salmas after the European elections when the MP accused the government of catering to elite interests and famously told Mitsotakis that the so-called “staff state” consisted of him and “five of his friends.” While Mitsotakis refrained from expelling Salmas on that occasion, he made it clear that it was the final warning.
Salmas’ ongoing references to the Ministry of Culture tender—deemed by the government as unfounded accusations—ultimately became the tipping point. Government sources pointedly remarked, “When someone, instead of presenting evidence to the prosecutor, continues to recycle unsubstantiated claims, their behavior becomes not just unacceptable, but suspect.” The expulsion, therefore, sends a broader message from Maximos Mansion about the boundaries of acceptable dissent within the party.
The Salmas case is far from over. A scheduled meeting of New Democracy’s Ethics Committee on Monday at noon will address the issue further. While Salmas has indicated he will attend the session to present his defense, he claims that committee chairman Giannis Tragakis has not provided specific details regarding the charges. According to government sources, the impeachment relates to “anti-parliamentary, anti-party, or anti-collegial behavior that has caused significant damage to the party or another MP.” The expulsion itself, however, is widely regarded as inevitable, and Salmas appears unwilling to follow a conciliatory path akin to Lefteris Avgenakis, should he be ousted.
It is worth recalling that Salmas had previously voiced serious objections to the judicial charter, only backing down at the last moment, and had also voted against the civil marriage equality bill. His mounting defiance suggests that this expulsion will reverberate within the party, sending a clear signal to other MPs about the limits of opposition under Mitsotakis’ leadership.
