JNS
President Nikos Christodoulides faces attacks from rivals who have been unable to move on from their electoral defeat in 2023.
Cyprus has always been a place where politics gets personal, but what’s happening to President Nikos Christodoulides since his 2023 election win takes it to another level. A former diplomat and foreign minister, he campaigned as an independent, severing ties with the Democratic Rally to appeal to a broad coalition of centrists and conservatives.
His campaign focused on cleaning up corruption, fixing the economy and holding a tough line on the issue of Cyprus’s division without giving in too much to Turkish demands. But since he won, left-wing groups like AKEL and left-leaning VOLT, his political rivals and even folks who seem sympathetic to the Turkish side in the north just can’t let it go. They’re constantly throwing shade at him for everything from daily problems to big policy moves.
AKEL keeps calling out the Christodoulides government for high energy bills or the way the country is handling migrants, saying the president is out of touch or ineffective. On social media, especially on X, posts from opponents mock him, calling him a hardliner or just picking apart his every decision.
Then there are those who defend interests in the Turkish-occupied north, criticizing Christodoulides’s stance on property deals there as aggressive or blocking real progress toward peace. It’s like they’re blending old election grudges with bigger geopolitical gripes. The opposition’s inability to move beyond its electoral defeat fuels a cycle of polarization, where every misstep is magnified and every reform is scrutinized for ulterior motives.
Adding fuel to this fire is Cyprus’s strong relationship with Israel, which Christodoulides has leaned into as part of his foreign policy. Under his leadership, Cyprus has deepened its ties with Israel through energy partnerships, defense cooperation and joint efforts in the Eastern Mediterranean, building on a relationship that’s been solid for years. This makes sense for Cyprus, as Israel is a key ally for stability and economic projects such as gas exploration. But those on the left slam Christodoulides for aligning too closely with Israel, accusing him of sidelining Palestinian issues or antagonizing pro-Turkish factions who see Israel as a regional rival.
Another reason Cyprus’s leader is under fire is his push against corruption. After the “Cyprus Confidential” media coverage in late 2023 exposed how the island’s financial services were helping Russian oligarchs dodge sanctions, Christodoulides invited the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Justice Department to come and help investigate. By spring 2024, the American experts were on the ground working with local teams, and this year, Cyprus promised to follow through on their advice to tighten up the financial system.
Internationally, it was praised as a smart move to fix the country’s reputation. But at home, some politicians and businesses see this as a direct threat, while opposition voices in politics brush off the actions as a distraction or as not going far enough.
Looking back, other presidents also dealt with scandals, like Nicos Anastasiades, for instance, faced a banking crisis in 2013, but the political and media attacks weren’t as personal or constant as those currently facing Christodoulides. Even Makarios III, who founded the republic, faced huge crises like the invasion in 1974, but any complaints were focused on big events, not daily sniping.
Today, with social media, every slip-up gets blown up online, and it feels like the critics are just venting their frustration from losing the election. They grab onto anything, migration issues, foreign-policy tweaks, etc., just to keep the pressure on.
This says something sad about Cyprus. If you’re trying to run things honestly and without the usual backroom deals, you’re almost seen as an outsider. Christodoulides is pushing for real change, standing firm against pressures from the north and cleaning house on corruption, but instead of getting support, he has faced endless criticism. The left and those leaning toward Turkish views for the island can’t seem to move on from 2023, turning politics into a grudge match.
In the end, Christodoulides is holding his ground, which is impressive given the noise. In the future, people might look back and see him as the guy who tried to make Cyprus better, while his critics just come off as sore losers. If things keep going this way, though, it could deepen the divides Cyprus already has stuck between different ideologies, between the north and south, and between those who want reform and those stuck in the past. History will likely judge not the volume of the mud slung, but the resilience of the leader who stood firm amidst it.
