2004-06-13 EU Election Results for Greece

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• http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/vote2004/euro/html/10.stm

• http://www.elections2004.eu.int/ep-election/sites/en/results1306/countries/gr/results/names.html

Results show a high polarisation in voters, most of whom have voted for representatives of the party of the incumbent government. Although member of the PPE (which followed its extremely pro-patent shadow rapporteur Wuermeling), the governmental party, Nea Dimokratia, has voted against software patents in september 2003, following the lead of the group around Kauppi (which included EPP groups from Finnland, Austria, Italy and other countries). As in other countries and parties, the minister sitting above the patent office did not oppose the pro-patent decision taken at the council of ministers. The previously ruling socialist party had been voting consistently pro-patent and election had been quite recent, so the ministrial decision might have been a result of being insufficiently prepared for such issues merely continuing the policies of the previous government or passively following the guidance of the civil servants from the patent office who represent greece in the council.

The communist party, clearly anti-software-patent, retained its seats, but some other leftwing parties lost seats. All in all, the situation did not change much in Greece.