Italy’s Democrats are weighing possible alliances for the country’s national elections in September and will decide in the coming days and weeks on the composition of any new coalitions, party leader Enrico Letta said in an interview with la Repubblica newspaper published today, according to Bloomberg.
Polls show the Democrats, or PD, coming in second behind the right-wing Brothers of Italy party, led by Giorgia Meloni. The right-wingers are already part of a wider electoral coalition, which includes Matteo Salvini’s League and former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia.
Letta is expected to consider linking up with some centrist and center-left parties to form a coalition that could defeat the Meloni-led bloc. The PD leader, who briefly served as prime minister, told Bloomberg News on July 21 that polls do not yet reflect his party’s strength, as he expects voters to ultimately decide to punish politicians who turned their backs on the outgoing prime minister. Mario Draghi.
Draghi resigned as prime minister last week after three parties in his coalition – the centre-right Forza Italia and League, as well as the anti-establishment Five Star Movement – withdrew their support.
“We’re talking about fascism”
A coalition led by Meloni’s party, which has its roots in Italy’s post-fascist movement, is set to campaign on a mix of fiscal generosity and nationalist policies, potentially upsetting markets and European partners. And while Meloni insisted in a newspaper interview on Saturday that the Right was not a threat, Letta warned that a government led by Italy’s Brothers would jeopardize many of the achievements of previous governments.
Asked whether Italy would risk scrapping abortion rights under a Meloni government, Letta said “the climate is this,” though he expressed faith in the country’s judicial system. A right-wing government would at least push young people to want to leave the country, Letta told la Repubblica.
When asked if the legacy of Italy’s Brothers would be a campaign issue, Letta said: “I could certainly talk about fascism”, although he said his group’s campaign would be mainly about the main issues.
While Italian media have speculated whether Letta will seek to revive an alliance with the Five Stars, led by former prime minister Giuseppe Conte, the PD chief ruled out any new link, responding with a simple “No” when was asked if Conte’s team could be part of an alliance.
Letta did not rule out alliances with former Forza Italia ministers after several of them quit the party in protest over his role in ousting Draghi, and also said he would continue to talk to Luigi Di Maio – a former leader of the Five Star who has since broken with the party.
The Democratic leader was less enthusiastic about a possible tie-up with Matteo Renzi, another former prime minister and ex-PD leader, who now leads a smaller party. “We will talk to everyone,” Leta stated.
Source: Capital
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