As the new parliament is getting ready to convene its first plenum on Thursday, electing a new House president is proving tougher than anticipated, as parties are still tiptoeing around each other, undecided about who to support.

The only candidacy on the table is that of Disy leader Annita Demetriou, who held the post during the previous term.

Akel is still mulling over the possibility of putting its leader Stefanos Stefanou in the ring or supporting the potential candidacy of Diko leader Nikolas Papadopoulos.

Diko was expecting Akel to clarify its stance on Tuesday so it could proceed accordingly, but Akel produced no decision and will be meeting again on Wednesday afternoon.

This leaves Diko in limbo and the party may end up supporting Annita Demetriou if Papadopoulos decides not to table his own candidacy.

Sources close to Diko said that, although there were no scheduled meetings between Diko and Akel, impromptu get-togethers could not be ruled out.

In the meantime, Disy deputy president Efthymios Diplaros said his party was keeping channels of communication open with Diko.

The comings and goings are being closely followed by Elam and Alma.

Alma appears ready to support Stefanou but sources were doubtful if Irene Charalambides could be persuaded to vote for her former party.

Elam has already announced the candidacy of its leader Christos Christou. However, Elam may withdraw its candidacy to support Papadopoulos with the sole purpose of preventing Annita Demetriou or an Akel candidate from being elected.

Direct Democracy, which gained as many seats as Alma, has not taken sides, although Elam’s Christou did speak with Fidias Papayiotou on Tuesday. If Direct Democracy supports Papadopoulos, Annita Demetriou would be left out of a second round of elections for parliament’s top position.

However, Direct Democracy will be putting the issue to vote on the party’s app once there is a clear picture.