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In the elections in Sardinia, the left-wing camp is winning back a region for the first time in years.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has led her party, the Fratelli d’Italia, from election victory to election victory. Now the Italian right-wing coalition is suffering a defeat, as can be seen after almost all votes have been counted: in the elections in Sardinia, the left-wing camp is winning back a region for the first time in years.
In Sardinia, the left-wing opposition was united for the first time in a long time. The social democratic Partito Democratico and the 5 Star Movement had agreed on a joint candidate. And they have now narrowly won the election against the right-wing coalition. With almost all votes counted, Alessandra Todde of the left-wing 5 Star Movement, which is supported by the Democratic Party (PD), has 45.3 percent of the vote. This put her just ahead of Paolo Truzzu, a right-wing candidate selected by Meloni, who received 45.0 percent of the vote.
This is an embarrassment for Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Alessandra Todde is the first member of the 5 Star Movement to rule an Italian region. Despite the narrow lead and the counting not being fully completed, pollsters and newspapers declared victory for Todde.
“This is an embarrassment for Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni,” says SRF Italian correspondent Franco Battel. This was because she had single-handedly chosen the losing candidate from the right-wing coalition, one of her closest confidants – against the will and resistance of her government partner Matteo Salvini from the Lega. “The defeat falls directly on Meloni.”
For the first time, a victory for Italy’s left
For the Italian left, which has not exactly been spoiled for success in recent years, this is a victory for the first time. If the two left-of-center opposition parties pull together and don’t tear themselves apart, they can defeat Meloni: This is the message that many commentators are now reading from the election results.
It will soon become clear whether this is actually true. Because four more Italian regions will soon be voting. And the EU Parliament elections are coming up in June.
“It is already clear today: Meloni can also be defeated,” says the SRF Italian correspondent. She ignored the Lega when choosing her candidate. “Since then there has been a noticeable crunch in the framework of your right-wing coalition. Meloni messed up the start of the 2024 election year.”