1974 Greek republic referendum

The referendum campaign included television debates in which Constantine himself took part on the monarchist side, and those debating in favour of the republic included Marios Ploritis, Leonidas Kyrkos, Phaedon Vegleris, George Koumandos, Alexandros Panagoulis and Costas Simitis, who later (from 1996 to 2004) served as Prime Minister of Greece.

Political parties abstained from taking part in the referendum campaign, with the television debates confined to ordinary citizens representing one side or the other (although most members of some parties and alliances had sympathies for one side or the other, with members of the National Democratic Union in favour of restoring the monarchy and the United Left, Centre Union – New Forces, and PASOK in favour of the republic). On 23 November 1974 Prime Minister Karamanlis requested for his parliamentary party group (New Democracy) to adopt a neutral stance on the issue. Two televised speeches a week were given to each side, with an additional two messages broadcast by the former king; a radio broadcast on 26 November and a television speech on 6 December.

With the announcement of the results, Karamanlis said: "A cancer has been removed from the body of the nation today."[5] On 15 December 1974, the incumbent President General Phaedon Gizikis (appointed by Ioannides in November 1973) submitted his resignation, and Karamanlis thanked him with a personal visit and by writing for his services to the country. On 18 December 1974, Michail Stasinopoulos, a state list MP for New Democracy, was elected and sworn in as provisional President of Greece, as the Parliament was to compose a new Constitution.

In February 1988, Prime Minister Constantine Mitsotakis stated in an interview given in London that although he was a republican, the manner in which the referendum was carried out had been "unfair".[6] The statement attracted wide criticism in Greece and was debated in the media.[7] For the remainder of his life, under the pretense of invoking the narrative style reserved for historical reminiscence, Mitsotakis continued to refer to the deposed monarch deferentially by referring to him as the "King" in multiple interviews.

In April 2007, the newspaper To Vima carried out a survey in which only 11.6% of those polled wished for Greece to become a monarchy again.