Still in charge ALEXIS TSIPRAS, who won his second national election victory on September 20th by a poll-defyingly wide margin, is only 41 years old—one of the euro zone’s youngest prime ministers. Yet he has been a professional left-wing politician for two decades. While his Syriza party languished in opposition, Mr Tsipras enjoyed his role as Greece’s anti-austerity firebrand, denouncing the reforms of socialist and centre-right governments and insisting that only a state-led economy could create jobs and restore generous benefits. But as he starts his second term in office, he must put his ideological convictions on hold.
Syriza’s win gave Mr Tsipras a fresh mandate to keep Greece in the euro zone. To do so, the new government must immediately increase taxes, cut pensions and accelerate the privatisation of state-owned companies—reforms Mr Tsipras defiantly opposed during his first term. That was before the threat of an involuntary “Grexit” made him accept a new €86 billion ($ 95 billion) bail-out by Greece’s creditors—and their conditions. Like earlier Greek leaders in trouble, Mr Tsipras has executed an ideological…
