Greek leftist party Syriza keeps poll lead as elections loom

A flock of pigeons flies over a banner with an image of opposition leader and head of radical leftist Syriza party Alexis Tsipras at the party's pre-election kiosk in Athens January 15, 2015. REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greek leftist opposition party Syriza holds a steady lead over the ruling conservatives with little over a week of campaigning left for Prime Antonis Samaras to try and close the gap before a snap election on Jan. 25, an opinion poll showed on Thursday.

Syriza would garner 31.5 percent of the vote against 28 percent for Samaras' New Democracy party, which has helped push through unpopular reforms as part of an international bailout, the survey by pollsters Pulse for Action 24 television showed.