Italy's New MandateMeloni would be the first woman to hold the post, and the first right-wing P.M. in the history of the Republic born atop the ashes of the fascist regime in 1945.
The collapse of Mario Draghi's technocrat-led government marks the end of the current legislature in Italy. Italians will head to the polls on September 25 to choose their new rulers. The odds-on favorite to be sworn in as Prime Minister is Giorgia Meloni, the leader of the right-wing Brothers of Italy party. Meloni, 45, would be the first woman to hold the post, and the first right-wing P.M. in the history of the Republic born atop the ashes of the fascist regime in 1945.
Although the Italian right severed its links with post-fascist movements in the early ‘90s and many of its prominent members have served as ministers in Berlusconi's various governments, the center-left is up in arms at the prospect of a right-wing P.M. All polls show the center-right coalition, which includes Meloni, former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, and Matteo Salvini of the Lega party, on course to win an overall majority in both houses of the Italian Parliament. That would mean a 5-year period in power in which Meloni and her allies could change Italy’s Constitution and veer toward a presidential system, which the right has advocated for years.
The Italian establishment is having none of this, though. The left-wing newspaper La Repubblica has begun a smear campaign against Meloni, calling her "Ducetta"—that is, "Little Duce", a play on the nickname of Benito Mussolini. The paper regularly frets about Meloni's supposed unsuitability for office and the threat she would pose to Italian democracy. It warns that Italy will be turned over to runaway investors, see the curtailment of civil rights, and will sever ties to the European Union. Many feel strongly about that last possibility, as Brussels is bankrolling Italy’s ailing economy through the Next Generation EU project. As President of the European Conservatives and Reformists Party (ECR) in the European Parliament, Meloni has reiterated that Italy’s standing in Europe would not change if she were to form a center-right governing coalition. In March, for example, writing for the moderate Corriere della Sera, Meloni expressed her belief in a European confederation of states.
The Italian Democratic Party and its media allies relentlessly harp on Meloni's alleged weaknesses; “She’s not worthy of being Prime Minister”, they claim; “She’s untested, and her party is short on political talent”, they add. But after years of trying the tested pro-establishment parties—and the populist Five Star Movement in 2018—Italians want change.
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Source:
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/italys-new-mandate/
