Pavlos de Grèce responded, “a lot goes through my mind,” when asked whether he is considering founding a political party, as the last king of Bulgaria, Simeon, once did. He also reassured that “Democracy and the Constitution are absolutely secure. It’s 2026, democracy continues strongly, and there is absolutely no question of a return to monarchy.”

“I have obtained citizenship and I live among you with my name. I am a Greek who grew up abroad and has returned. I want to be useful to my country; I am not asking to do anything different,” he said on ANT1 on Thursday evening.

When asked about the example of the last king of Bulgaria, Simeon, whose party won elections, Pavlos de Grèce said: “A lot goes through my mind. I am very interested in politics; my life has changed because of politics. I studied international relations in America, but I am not a politician. Politics is an art that solves a society’s problems. I am trying to find my own ways to help society.”

In response to a question about how he envisions his future, Pavlos de Grèce said: “I have great love and willingness to help young people. I feel I can bridge Greeks of the diaspora with the country. To work with Greeks here who are thirsty for a different way of working. We need to find ways to be productive and useful to society. I have the idea of creating an organization that will operate and help retain the 500,000 who are leaving and the 10 million who live outside the country. That is the strength the country has. Every government tries, but on my part I will try to do whatever I can with these ideas.”

He was then asked how he views Greek political life and replied: “It is a great joy for me to live in Greece as a citizen. In 1.5 years I will have the right to vote. In the past 50 years, there has not been a party leader who did not want to leave the country at a better level than they received it. For the current government, the first difficult moments were in Evros when we closed the borders, then the pandemic happened and the whole world went crazy. However, the government had very good communication in reopening tourism that summer. Greece’s economy improved; we closed the Stock Exchange as one of the best performers. Now we have other difficulties in everyday life, but we see this in other countries as well. If you cannot put food on the table, if you cannot pay rent, you do not feel secure — and that is the problem Greece must solve.”

Regarding the discussion about a crisis of institutions, Pavlos de Grèce said: “When the state protects institutions, people feel they can function under any government. When institutions do not function properly, trust between the state and the people is lost. Institutions mean meritocracy, transparency, security, and justice. We have seen factions from the far left and the far right — this happens because when someone does not feel secure, these groups come and take advantage to bring them to their side. The problem with migrants has created issues across Europe. In Greece, we are better off. Here we have Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is our flag abroad. If I were head of state, I would have honored their mother for raising Greeks. That is the kind of migrant we want.”

Speaking about the surname he adopted, he said: “I like the name de Grèce; it suits me. It is a name my uncle Michael used in France, and it suited him as well — he used it as a writer. The name had already been used by my uncle; he had obtained two passports. It wasn’t something new we came up with. It connected us to the family, so there is no issue. If someone thinks it implies a title, it does not. For many years we went around without a surname — we were princes without a last name, and that was very difficult.”

Finally, speaking about his wife, Marie-Chantal, with whom he has been together for 30 years, he said: “There happened to be a party in New Orleans. I saw her and was stunned — it hit me suddenly. When we got engaged and the media asked us how many children we would have, I thought three would be good. She answered five. I looked at her — five? She wanted five, and we have five.”

“They are the greatest gift anyone could have; I love them very much. You must have ideas that align and have a good family. I am very lucky because she is an exceptional person, works hard, an excellent mother, and loves her children,” he continued about Marie-Chantal. As for their children, he said: “They really enjoyed returning to Greece. The children love our homeland. We used to have lunch and dinner together. We created a loving home.”