Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, 85, withdrew from running for the Italian presidency. The decision was communicated this Saturday (22), in a note in which he says he is in favor of building a name on the right that can be consensual in the election.
The legends of this field held a meeting to define strategies for the election that, as of Monday (24), will appoint the successor of Sergio Mattarella, 80. The president is chosen indirectly, carried out by Parliament and by state representatives.
There are no formal candidates — the 1,009 “big voters” can write on the ballot the name of any Italian citizen who is 50 years old and who enjoys political and civil rights — but Berlusconi has been putting himself as a possible name to be nominated for the post. .
“I believe that Silvio Berlusconi can be useful to the country,” he said late last year, speaking about himself in the third person. “I will not give up and I will do what my country needs.”
In early December 2021, the politician, who was prime minister four times, sent an image of his face to deputies accompanied by a collection of his most beautiful speeches. The action was interpreted as the launch of a not necessarily discreet campaign for the presidency.
In recent days, he has even been publicly supported by two other right-wing leaders, Matteo Salvini (from the League) and Giorgia Meloni (from the Brothers of Italy party). The move, however, had been seen more as a kind of tribute to the last moments of Berlusconi’s political career, who is the subject of more than 30 lawsuits – including one for the crime of child prostitution (acquitted) and another for tax fraud (convicted). .
This Saturday, he made the withdrawal official. “I have decided to take other steps towards national responsibility, asking those who proposed my name to the presidency to renounce this nomination,” he said in a statement. “We will work with center-right leaders to find a name that can rally broad consensus in Parliament.”
The parties of Salvini and Giorgia Meloni accepted the former prime minister’s decision. Also in a note, the leader of the League stressed that the bloc remains united.
In addition to Berlusconi, speculation for the new president’s name includes current incumbent Mattarella, Prime Minister Mario Draghi and at least nine others, including three women, according to La Reppublica.
The result, however, is unpredictable. The 1,009 deputies, senators and regional delegates meet in Rome from Monday for the election. The vote is secret, and everyone receives a blank ballot, on which they can write whatever they want — including jokes. All nominations are then read aloud in plenary by the mayor.
The name that obtains two-thirds of the votes wins (673). If no one gets the mark until the third ballot, after the fourth ballot, the absolute majority (505) takes effect. There is no limit to the number of votes; in 1971, for example, 23 of them were needed for the election of Giovanni Leone, the record until today. In general, there is one session per day.
Political scientists compare the selection process to that of the Catholic Church’s conclaves for the selection of the pope.
In addition to the election being indirect, Italian politics has a certain degree of fragmentation, and experts point out that today there are two almost equal sides, left and right, neither with enough votes to elect a candidate. According to projections by the newspaper Corriere della Sera, the center-right bloc would total 450 votes among the “big voters”, and the center-left 420.
Berlusconi, of course, would face strong rejection in the latter group, which would make his nomination very difficult. Many bets now rest on Draghi, who managed to rally a broad coalition when he was elected prime minister after a crisis in Giuseppe Conte’s tenure. This scenario, however —in addition to the unprecedented nature of a head of government being elevated to head of state—, would force a new political seam for the nomination of another prime minister, reshuffling the cards of Italian politics.
The occupant of the Quirinal Palace, the president’s residence, has an institutional role in the Italian political regime, but he also communicates and controls the three Powers, appoints the prime minister and his ministers and has the power to eventually dissolve Parliament in advance. . In other words, it cannot be considered a “queen of England”, as in other parliamentary democracies.
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