January 18, 1996
Web posted at: 8:50 p.m. EST (0150 GMT)
From Correspondent Anthee Carassavas and wire reports
ATHENS, Greece (CNN) -- In a secret ballot marked by moments of nail-biting suspense, Costas Simitis swept past three contenders to replace socialist arch-rival Andreas Papandreou as prime minister of Greece.
Simitis won 86 of the 167 votes cast by socialist lawmakers, beating Akis Tsohatzopoulos, a staunch Papandreou loyalist, by 11 votes in the final round. Socialist deputies abstained from voting.
Simitis and Tsohatzopoulos tied in the first round, which eliminated the defense minister Gerassimos Arsenis and veteran socialist deputy Yannis Haralambopolous.
The 59-year-old soft-spoken technocrat will serve out the term of Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) founder Papandreou, who resigned earlier this week saying he was too weak to continue after two months in a hospital intensive care unit for lung and kidney failure. Papandreou had two years remaining in his term.
"My election is not a personal victory," Simitis said. "It is everyone's victory. It is PASOK's victory. Together with all its forces I shall seek to implement the party's program."
But he also insisted that it was a victory for change and a break with the iron-fisted rule of Papandreou.
Pledging to steer the party on a path of economic and political renewal, Simitis said it was a historic moment for the party. "It represents the need for criticism and free thinking. The vote showed parliamentary deputies want continuity and rejuvenation."
One of the first members of PASOK, Simitis has served in every cabinet since Papandreou was elected Greece's first socialist prime minister in 1981. He has been agriculture, economy, and most recently, industry minister.
For the past year he has been one of the party's most vociferous dissidents, challenging Papandreou's leadership and calling for greater democracy in PASOK and the government.
A self-proclaimed socialist reformer, Simitis' flair for policy made him the Brussels favorite in the race for Papandreou's succession.
Simitis, who studied law in Germany and economics in Britain, is certain to step up Greece's economic pace, and bring it closer to European Union guidelines.
His biggest challenge is expected to be uniting all the factions which have riven PASOK, especially after Papandreou's prolonged illness.
President Costis Stephanopoulos will give Simitis a mandate on Friday to form a new government. The 300-seat parliament, where the Socialists have 170 deputies, will then approve his Cabinet in a confidence vote later this month.
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