(written prior to Meloni’s election)
By Benyamin Atabani (Europe Editor)
Edited by Piers Marchant
Giorgia Meloni- the Italian politician who aspires to take the seat of power at the Palazzo Chigi
In late July, “Super Mario” Draghi resigned as Italian Prime Minister, after
tendering his resignation to the President Sergio Mattarella. Mario Draghi was
at the head of a technocratic government formed after the chaos of the
coalition between two populist parties, 5 Star Movement (5SM) and Lega.
which lasted until August 2019, followed by another tenuous alliance between
5SM and two left wing parties – Democratic Party (PD) and Free and Equal –
lasting until February 2021. Draghi was appointed due to his reputation for
shrewd economic management after he helped the EU out of the Eurozone
Crisis. His resignation came after 5SM, whom he relied upon to win votes,
withdrew support in a confidence motion over a large financial package to
solve the cost-of-living crisis afflicting Italy and many other major economies.
Questions quickly arose over where Italy would go next after its now
impending election. Giorgia Meloni has been tipped by many as the front-
runner for next Prime Minister, with her far-right party, Brothers of Italy (Fdl),
riding high in the polls, and seemingly able to form a majority together with
former Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi’s centre-right party, Forza Italia, and the
other main far right party, Lega. Given the fact that polling trends over the past
3 months have shown significant support for the three right-wing parties,
many on the left of Italian politics have begun to feel as though they have no
hope of winning the election, with members of the centre-left PD already
suggesting that the election was a foregone conclusion in Meloni’s favour.
However, in recent days, links between the Italian far-right and Putin’s Russia
have come to light, with claims emerging that Silvio Berlusconi and Matteo
Salvini met with Russian diplomats. This comes after criticism of the three
politicians’ positions in relation to the war in Ukraine, as Salvini and Berlusconi
made it clear they did not support Italy sending arms to Ukraine, whilst Meloni
appeared to vociferously condemn the Russian invasion, potentially putting
her at odds with her two budding coalition partners.
What does the future look like under a potential Meloni government? Critics
of Meloni on the left have derided her as xenophobic and some have gone as
far as to suggest she represents a return to the fascism of the 1920s. Meloni
has in the past been involved with the neofascist group Italian Social
Movement (MSI), which was explicitly founded “in opposition to the
democratic system,” attempting to “keep alive the idea of fascism,” and her
pointed refusal to condemn the actions of Benito Mussolini, have led to the
prominent Italian historian of fascism, Carlo Greppi, raising fears of a
rehabilitation of the “ventennio fascista”, or the “Fascist 20 years.” Meloni is
unlikely to curry any great favour amongst Italy’s more centrist European allies,
with the prominent German paper “Tagesspiegel” describing her as having
made her career in “Fascho-kreisen”, or “fascist circles.” Meloni could also
spark the return of disputes over migrant boats coming from Libya, and her
party has taken a strong stance against what it sees as “foreign cultures”
destroying the “traditional family.”
Economically, her platform is rather unclear, and she often opts to deflect from
questions around economics with answers around “the future of [Italy’s]
civilisation,” and with hardline anti-immigration rhetoric, blaming
undocumented immigrants for a lack of jobs (particularly in the Southern half
of Italy.) There are additionally worries that the EU could cut off economic
support for Italy under a Meloni premiership, thereby worsening the existing
debt problems which are weighing down the Italian economy despite the
efforts of Mario Draghi, who secured a €200 billion aid package from the EU
for post-covid recovery. Meloni’s refusal to come forward with a clear
economic plan, in combination with her divisive social policies, has prompted
concerns of a 21 st century iteration of the 1970s and the so-called “years of
lead” which saw economic stagnation and stratospherically high inflation,
coupled with political turbulence which culminated in violence and division
(including the infamous murder of PM Aldo Moro by the “Red Brigade,” a
communist paramilitary organisation) as extremes on the left and right
clashed. “If this is to end in fire, then we should all burn together”- the now
infamous quote which features as the first line of Meloni’s autobiography is
particularly striking in giving a perhaps fateful insight into her potential
attitude to governance and solving Italy’s many problems. Meloni’s brand is
defined by two factors, those being her powerful rhetoric, steeped in
references to “family” and “culture”, and her charisma, which leads to her
being constantly accompanied by fanatic supporters chanting her name during
her speeches. Meloni’s oratory skill, and her party’s focus on unitary leadership
and her character have caused comparisons with Mussolini’s cult of
personality, and this centralised role which she enjoys within Fdl is consistent
with her proposed constitutional reforms for Italy as a whole, which would
increase executive power and centralise this in the hands of a (non-
ceremonial) President. It is this very policy (that would create a powerful
presidency, with less checks and balances than those imposed on an Italian
Prime Minister currently), which has caused significant disquiet among liberals
and the ever-diminishing generation who lived through fascism in Italy: they
fear that Meloni could consolidate long-term power without the significant
scrutiny of the current system.
The fall of Italy to the far right signals that the strength of these parties has not
decreased across Europe since their resurgence after the 2008 financial crisis.
Viktor Orbán has consolidated power in Hungary, the Sweden Democrats have
a chance to partake in a Swedish government and parties like RN in France and
VOX in Spain continue to encroach upon their more liberal opposition. How the
EU will handle this wave of populism remains to be seen, but the likely election
of Giorgia Meloni is nonetheless a definitive turning point in modern European
politics.
Edited by Piers Marchant
References
1 https://decode39.com/3839/meet-giorgia-meloni/
2 https://www.politico.eu/article/russia-link-italy-giorgia-meloni-election-
campaign/
3 https://www.politico.eu/article/russia-link-italy-giorgia-meloni-election-
campaign/
4 https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/22/opinion/italy-draghi-meloni-
government.html?referringSource=articleShare
5 https://www.vanityfair.it/article/chi-e-davvero-giorgia-meloni-destra-
estrema-fascista
6 https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/giorgia-meloni-bringt-sich-in-stellung-
wird-diese-faschisten-hoffnung-bald-italien-regieren/28542706.ht
7 https://www.editorialedomani.it/politica/italia/cosi-il-neoconservatorismo-
italiano-ha-sposato-il-fascismo-mai-morto-oaw4f0ay
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