Thirteen million Italians are called to vote on Sunday and Monday to renew the governments of two important regions, an election that looks like a test for the far-right government of Giorgia Meloni in power for more than three months. The two most populated regions of the peninsula, Lombardy, around Milan, the economic lung of the country, and Lazio, the region of the capital Rome, must elect their respective presidents and governments.
Polling stations are open until 11 p.m. local time and will reopen Monday from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. The results will be known on Monday after the close of business. One of the issues will be the individual outcome of the parties in the ruling coalition, which could have repercussions on the balance of power between Fratelli d’Italia (FDI), Giorgia Meloni’s party, Matteo Salvini’s Antimigrant League, and Forza Italia (FI), the formation of Silvio Berlusconi.
The inability of opposition parties to unite against it
The League and FI are losing momentum while, on the contrary, Fratelli d’Italia continues to progress, according to a poll published by the Youtrend institute on February 2: in the event of new elections at national level, its score would rise to 29, 4% against 26% in the September legislative elections. The League is at 8.7% and FI at 7%, according to the same poll. Giorgia Meloni also benefits from the inability of opposition parties to unite against her. The Democratic Party (PD, left), busy looking for a new leader, is retreating in the face of the rise of the 5 Star Movement, while the center remains stable.
A situation illustrated by these two regional elections, where the candidates presented by his coalition are given favorites. The outgoing president of Lombardy, Attilio Fontana, member of the League, should thus win against divided opposition which does not seem able to threaten his re-election. The situation is similar in Lazio, where the right-wing candidate, Francesco Rocca, is supported by the entire coalition, in the face of once again divided opposition.