In chasing stability, has Italy made things worse?

 

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In chasing stability, has Italy made things worse? By Giorgia Orlandi, Euronews Rome correspondent Italy’s lawmakers have chosen to re-elect President Sergio Mattarella to avoid a disaster. But what appears to be a safe choice hides a bitter truth: a political crisis is now virtually unavoidable. A week before Mattarella’s re-election, his spokesperson Giovanni Grasso tweeted a picture of his office filled with empty boxes. The image spoke for itself: Mattarella, who’s 80 years old, planned to retire. He never missed a chance to make his intentions clear as the end of his term approached. What happened in the days following the tweet confirmed that Italian politics never fails to surprise. At the very beginning of the presidential race, Prime Minister Mario Draghi was floated as the frontrunner. The former ECB President’s credibility and international standing made him a heavyweight candidate, but the political parties supporting his cabinet were faced with the dilemma on how to replace him as PM. Draghi never ruled out the possibility of becoming president. As tempting as it could seem to see him moving to the Quirinal Palace and staying on for another seven years, the quest to find a new premier without undermining the stability of the ruling coalition posed a serious risk. “It was much easier to agree on a new president than finding Draghi number 2 replacing Draghi number 1,” Francesco Clementi, professor of comparative public law at the University of Perugia, told me. But political parties had to confront another issue. If Draghi stayed put, was it possible to find a new president whose profile could match Draghi’s standard? Was it OK to have two technocrats in the two top roles ? As the presidential vote dragged on for several rounds with party leaders failing to reach an agreement, the only name to receive significant support in the daily ballots was Mattarella. In the eight and final round, he garnered 759 of the 1,009 overall votes, becoming the second most-voted president in the history of the Italian Republic. It is obvious that Mattarella has been reconfirmed to keep the status quo and to avoid a snap election while ensuring Mario Draghi remains in the driving seat. In practice, this means keeping the most suitable person in charge to manage the €191.5 billion from the EU’s recovery fund. A safe choice that not only reassures Brussels but also stabilises financial markets. The legacy of such a process is set to weigh heavily on Italian politics: the struggle to find appropriate candidates has shown an unprecedented leadership crisis and demonstrated the inability – or unwillingness – of the political class to renew itself. Does freezing the current political situation ultimately mean things will stay the same? Well, not really. The decision to re-elect President Mattarella has exposed divisions within the ruling coalition that had been kept at bay in the past few months. Most importantly, the process has opened deep fractures within political parties, the main one being the centre-right bloc. Matteo Salvini’s failure to act as the kingmaker in the presidential role has reinvigorated his rebellious side. Recent media reports suggest the Lega leader might be plotting to trigger a government crisis. Whether or not that might happen is yet to be seen but it’s clear that the centre-right bloc is not the same anymore. Giorgia Meloni, leader of Brothers of Italy, has not welcomed Salvini’s decision to back Mattarella’s re-election and has been quite vocal about her displeasure. On top of that, new divisions are emerging within the 5 Star Movement between current Foreign Affairs Minister Luigi Di Maio and former Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte. For the time being, Mario Draghi has vowed to move forward with the overdue reforms that must be implemented in time to meet Brussels’ deadlines and unlock the recovery funds. His main task now is to lead the country until the next general election, scheduled for mid-2023. But the question looming over Italy is how long the truce will last before political infighting becomes unbearable for Draghi himself. Despite his reputation as someone who doesn’t quit easily, this state of affairs is quickly becoming a new challenge for Italy’s most respected leader.