A coalition of parties on the Italian right brought down Mario Draghi’s government Polls are supportive Announce a high probability of a right-wing government formed by two radical parties (Fratelli d’Italia and Lega) and the more traditional right-wing, Berlusconi’s Forza Italia.
The Fratelli d’Italia party, founded by Giorgia Meloni, leads the polls with 23% of voting intentions. This ranks shoulder to shoulder with the centre-left Democratic Party (22%).
The ever-highly fragmented Italian parliament forces the government in Rome to always be a coalition, contributing to the traditional short-term tenure of each prime minister – Italy is heading for its 68th government in 76 years. Mario Draghi formed a coalition government with seven parties, and the coalition broke down after 17 months.
Although opinion polls clearly show two diametrically opposed forces (Altras Fratelli d’Italia and Social Democrats of the Democratic Party) at the top and almost on equal footing, this time only the right is gaining partners to form a majority: the nationalist Matteo Salvini’s League has 15% of the voting intentions and Berlusconi’s Forza Italia, eternal In response, appears with 8%.
On the left, the Democratic Party has only had connections with minor parties of value as this volatile group betrayed Draghi’s National Unity Government after breaking with former ally the 5 Star Movement (it fell from 32% to 12% in three years). 2 to 4%.
The strength of support makes Georgia Meloni the natural leader of the right-wing camp and the favorite to lead the government after snap elections on September 25.
Georgia Meloni, 45, has the merit of consistency: she has always positioned herself on the extreme and social right. It was born in Carpatella, one of the most famous neighborhoods in Rome and with a tradition of resistance. Melonie’s father left home when she was 12, the family struggled for resources, and she went to work as a waitress at a disco at 17.
He met a lot of people, many of the disco goers were political figures. They recommended her to Berlusconi, who in 2003, when she was 29, was the youth minister.
But that government, like others under Berlusconi, soon fell apart. Berlusconi, known to supporters as Il Cavaliere and to opponents as Il Caimano, founded a political bloc identified as the Popolo della Libertà (PdL) that united the right to govern Italy. Among the parties in this coalition were Francesco Fini’s Alianza, several successors to MSI, Mussolini’s Social Movement successor to Fascism.
When Berlusconi’s government fell – he was succeeded by the technocratic government of Mario Monti, a former Bank of Italy governor – Meloni was torn between joining Alianza or moving to a new party.
It hung around Alianza for some time, but the party was consumed by internal tensions between its post-fascist status quo and a leadership with democratic convictions.
In 2011, Meloni decided to work with friends to found Fratelli d’Italia, the unofficial name of the country’s anthem. It is a popular party with a strong stance against immigration and for the defense of Christian values in Europe. He has strong sympathies with the Law and Justice Party in Poland. Meloni shouts “God, country and family” at rallies.
In Italy, Meloni’s Fratelli occupied much of the space occupied by Salvini’s League. Salvini is an admirer of Putin and Meloni is an Atlanticist. Salvini focuses on northern Italy, Meloni on the whole country. Both parties, Lega and Fratelli, had several contact ships.
The turning point for separatism came early last year, when Mario Draghi’s government of national unity was formed. Salvini joined and Meloni chose to remain in opposition.
With this choice, Meloni has risen from 6.4% in the European elections in May 2019 to 23% in the polls now. Meloni’s growth parallels what Salvini lost in these three years.
Voters who wanted to identify with Salvini in 2019 now prefer him because he has always shown consistency.
Georgia Meloni, always a woman of the people, an outspoken nationalist who says what the angry want to hear, is leading the race to govern Italy next fall.
Sitting at the table of the European Council, leaders who felt comfortable and safe with Mario Draghi’s financial prowess and complicit wisdom, will now end up facing a drastic political turn in the administration of Italy’s government. He may not be as provocative as France’s Le Pen, but the ideology — apart from his relationship with Putin, whom Meloni despises — is similar.
One fact to keep in mind: Strong support for Melony comes from the radical generation, both older and younger. Melonie Ao Sono, a single mother, has published her autobiography, Georgia. DJs did not stop promoting the book on social networks, thus multiplying the success of sales and popularity.
Italy has been under intense political campaigning for two months now. The battle for supremacy will be between Giorgia Meloni’s Fratelli d’Italia and Enrico Letta’s Democratic Party. It is a fight between the ultranationalist right and a kind of Italian PS.
Some political scientists expect Fratelli d’Italia to be a ephemeral political phenomenon, like the 5-Star Movement and the League, which lost half of its voters in three years. They also think that after decades of dominance by the eclipsed PSI and Christian Democracy, the stability of the Italian political landscape has not yet been achieved.
