Italian political parties with parliamentary representation begin negotiations, in which the future of Mario Draghi’s government is at stake. On Thursday (15), his resignation, informed after losing the support of the 5 Star Movement (M5E, anti-system), was rejected by President Sergio Mattarella.
Draghi, who is due to make an official trip to Algeria on Monday and Tuesday, is due to appear before parliament next week to verify that he has the support to remain in power as provided for by the constitution.
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The prime minister resigned Thursday night after losing the support of the M5E, which abstained from voting on a confidence motion on a decree law it considers contrary to its principles. Negotiations to form a new majority in the government and avoid early elections will occupy the weekend, as the scenarios and possibilities are very varied.
For many observers, it is possible that Draghi will accept a second term with a different majority, without the M5E. This would have political consequences, as it would rule out the winner of the 2018 parliamentary elections. For now, nothing has leaked about the position of the anti-systems. The acronym has left the door open for dialogue to recompose the government, but at the same time tends to leave the Executive.
“We have discussed, we have taken note of Draghi’s resignation and we will continue to discuss,” said its leader, Giuseppe Conte.
For its part, the Democratic Party (PD, left), among the main members of the coalition backing Draghi, promised to work for a quick solution. “We have five days for Parliament to confirm confidence in Draghi’s Executive and for Italy to emerge from this dramatic moment,” its leader, Enrico Letta, wrote on Twitter.
Anticipating the elections?
The biggest fear of the left and center parties is that the legislative elections will be brought forward by six months, since almost all polls point to the right and the far right as favorites.
“Several political leaders believe that early elections would be a desirable outcome because the government has practically lost its ability to adopt new reforms and make politically difficult decisions,” Lorenzo Codogno, an economist and visiting professor at the London School of Economics, told AFP.
“An early election would shorten an otherwise painfully long electoral campaign and prevent the government from functioning normally,” he stressed.
The right wing, on the other hand, is wavering because it is divided. The Forza Italia party of Silvio Berlusconi and the League of Matteo Salvini, the two members of the governing coalition, are struggling to explain their reasons for withdrawing their support from Draghi at a delicate moment for the country due to rising inflation, the new wave of covid and the consequences of the war in Ukraine.
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The big beneficiary would be the far-right leader, Georgia Meloni of the Fratelli d’Italia (Brothers of Italy), who has always remained in opposition, thus gaining an historic 25% of support from the electorate, according to polls. The current electoral law obliges the party, however, to present itself in coalition with other right-wing formations that currently support Draghi.
While the right-wing Salvini calls for early elections, Berlusconi limits himself to expressing his concern about the country’s economic and social situation. The political crisis in the European Union’s third largest economy also raises many questions across the Old Continent.
“In Moscow, they are toasting, they served (Vladimir) Putin Draghi’s head on a platter,” quipped Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio, who abandoned the anti-system a month ago, taking some 50 parliamentarians with him to a new party.
