A Greek opinion poll showed yesterday that the popular foreign minister's expected appointment as leader of the ruling socialists has helped the party narrow the opposition's lead ahead of a general election planned for March 7th.A Greek opinion poll showed yesterday that the popular foreign minister's expected appointment as leader of the ruling socialists has helped the party narrow the opposition's lead ahead of a general election planned for March 7th.
The ALCO poll for private Alter television came two days after another voter survey also showed that the leadership of Foreign Minister Mr George Papandreou would improve the party's chances.
Prime Minister Mr Costas Simitis resigned last week as leader of the Pan-Hellenic Socialist Movement (Pasok) and announced the date of early elections, two months ahead of the deadline.
The nationwide poll of 2,000 voters showed the conservative New Democracy party leading by a 2.4-point margin compared with a more than seven-point lead before Mr Simitis's announcements.
The figures mark a sharp turnaround in less than a week of voter preferences and perceptions of Pasok's electoral chances with Mr Papandreou at the helm.
Addressing the party's election candidates yesterday, Mr Papandreou called for a rejuvenation of the party, which has suffered from an image of being short on fresh ideas after staying in power for all but three years since 1981. "We have to ask ourselves, did we make mistakes? Yes we did. Did we care less than we should have? Yes we did. What we want is rejuvenation across the board," he said.
Most politicians expect the American-born Mr Papandreou to be the only candidate to replace Mr Simitis at a Pasok congress on February 6th, when the new leader will be elected.
The ALCO poll showed Mr Papandreou ahead of New Democracy leader Mr Costas Karamanlis as a preferred candidate for prime minister, with 46.3 per cent compared to 39.5 per cent. Pasok has trailed New Democracy in opinion polls for more than two years and Mr Simitis (67) has borne the brunt of voter discontent. - (Reuters)