(3 Sep 2009)
1. Wide of Parliament and Syntagma Square
2. Fountain in Syntagma Square
3. Man reading newspaper
4. People walking in square
5. Kiosk selling newspapers
6. Newspapers on stand
7. Close-up of newspaper with headline reading (Greek) "I failed, but vote for me again"
8. Pan of front page picture of Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis to photo of Socialist leader George Papandreou
9. Close-up of photo of Karamanlis during announcement of early general election
10. SOUNDBITE (Greek) vox pop, Marianna Andritsaki, Athens resident:
"Something must change because he hasn't fulfilled any of his promises."
11. SOUNDBITE (Greek) vox pop, Tassos Konstantinidis, Athens resident:
"I think it was a logical decision. Elections must take place because at some point a new party must come in to govern this land."
12. SOUNDBITE (Greek) vox pop, Stamatis, last name not given, Athens resident:
"Whether it's one or the other, it's the same thing. Nothing changes. People have problems, many problems."
13. SOUNDBITE (Greek) vox pop, name not given, Athens resident:
"It's not a good thing. He should have finished his term."
14. Men sitting in square
15. Wide of Parliament and Syntagma Square
STORYLINE:
Athens residents were reacting on Thursday to the early general election called by Greece's Conservative prime minister Costas Karamanlis, who is seeking a renewed mandate to impose tougher economic reforms and to deal with the international financial crisis.
Karamanlis called the October 4 poll even though several senior members of his cabinet had publicly opposed the move.
The Conservatives, stung by a string of financial scandals, are trailing the opposition Socialists in polls.
Their popularity sank further after recent destructive wildfires outside Athens.
Two surveys published last weekend gave the Socialists a six-point lead.
Greece, which has seen a sharp rise in unemployment and rapidly slowing growth this year, is expected to declare its economy in recession next month.
The 52-year-old Karamanlis has a majority of just one seat in the 300-member Parliament and is midway through his second term in office.
He had not been scheduled to face an election until 2011.
In a televised address on Wednesday, he blamed the Socialists for triggering the early vote.
Socialist leader George Papandreou had vowed to force an election next March, when Parliament will vote for the country's next president, requiring a two-thirds majority.
Papandreou called Wednesday's announcement an admission of Karamanlis' failure in office.
In June, Papandreou's Socialists won their first election battle in nine years, beating the conservatives by a 4.4-point margin in European Parliament elections.
But pollsters have cautioned that a rise in support for smaller political parties could lead to a hung parliament - forcing one of the two main parties to form a coalition, or triggering a new general election.
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