Akel secretary-general Stefanos Stefanou urged voters to participate “responsibly for the present and future of our society and our Cyprus” after casting his ballot on Sunday morning at the 1st Primary School of Yeri shortly before 9am, accompanied by his wife. Speaking to reporters outside the polling station, he said “voting is not just a right. It is primarily an act of responsibility,” and appealed for broad participation while asking citizens to consider the multiple social and economic problems facing the country. He called on voters to keep the occupied territories in mind and to support a solution that would liberate and reunite the island, warning that younger generations face growing insecurity and that young people in Cyprus are “the most stressed in Europe.”

After voting, Stefanou visited polling stations in the school complex and spoke with election staff and officials. Akel’s campaign has focused on social policy, cost-of-living concerns and renewed efforts toward a settlement of the Cyprus problem within the framework of a bicommunal, bizonal federation.