Disy formally submitted its 56 parliamentary candidacies on Wednesday, completing the official registration process ahead of the 24 May elections and presenting what party leader Annita Demetriou described as a "serious, clean, capable and effective" team.
Demetriou, who served as president of the House of Representatives during the outgoing parliament, filed her own candidacy in Larnaca, the district she hails from. "Larnaca and our homeland deserve the best," she said, calling on voters to "go to the polls, choosing the best candidates so that we can move forward."
Wednesday's submissions, required by law to be made in person between 9am and 12.30pm, marked a formal milestone in the election calendar. All candidacies had to be signed by four voters from the relevant district and were accompanied by a €500 fee.
A mix of veterans and fresh faces
Disy's lists combine sitting MPs, former ministers and a wide range of professionals, reflecting a deliberate attempt to balance political experience with new blood. In Nicosia, the largest constituency with 19 seats at stake, the party fields 19 candidates. Of the district's current Disy MPs, only Demetris M. Demetriou and Savia Orphanidou are seeking re-election, with Averof Neofytou and others having reached the party's three-term limit. The Nicosia list adds significant weight with former Health Minister George Pamboridis and former Defence Minister Charalambos Petrides, alongside the deputy mayor of Aglantzia, Andreas Konstantinou, vascular surgeon Neofitotos Zambas, digital transformation architect Constantinos Moundoukkos, clinical director Tina Pavlou and journalist Giorgos Chrysanthou, among others.
In Limassol, which returns 12 MPs, the party presents 12 candidates led by law professor Antonis Stylianou, sitting MP Foteini Tsiridou, educator Angeliki Riala and former basketball player turned coach Michalis Kounounis.
The Famagusta list, covering 11 seats, includes two sitting MPs, Nikos Georgiou and Giorgos Karollas, alongside retired brigadier Paris Markou, the son of 1974 National Guard hero Major Tasos Markou, who stands as a prominent new name in the district. Giorgos Lysandridis, president of the Pancyprian Union of Refugees, also features on the list.
In Larnaca, Demetriou heads a six-candidate ballot that includes sitting MP Prodromos Alambritis and Stalo Voniati, founder of a Larnaca soup kitchen. Paphos, which gained a seat in this election cycle due to population growth, sees the party contest all five available seats, with sitting MP Charalambos Pazaros joined by lawyer Nicoletta Constantinou and mechanical engineer Sotiris Koupparis, among others.
In Kyrenia, where three seats are allocated and Disy currently holds two, the party runs three candidates: sitting MP Rita Theodorou Superman, Dimos Georgiades, president of the party's youth wing Nedisy, and parliamentary aide Vasilis Koumettos.
The stakes
Disy enters the race as the largest party in the outgoing House of Representatives, holding 17 of the 56 seats, though polling shows it in a statistical dead heat with Akel. Both traditional parties are projected to lose ground compared to 2021, with new entrants Alma and Direct Democracy expected to draw significant support. Bookmakers currently price Disy as the most likely party to win the most votes on 24 May, though the margin is narrow.