After the landslide victory in the general elections, Giorgia Meloni of the Brothers of Italy (Fratelli d’Italia) party is set to become the first female prime minister of Italy. On September 25, 2022, elections were held in Italy in which the right alliance, the left alliance, the Five-Star Movement, and other traditional autonomous parties participated to elect the new prime minister. The right alliance headed by Giorgia Meloni from the Brothers of Italy won with a majority of 237 seats in the Chamber of Deputies (lower house) and 115 seats in the Senate of the Republic (upper house). The Brothers of Italy is the first far right party to come to power in Rome since the Second World War. After a long period, Italians have handed the reins of power to a party whose lineage goes back directly to Benito Mussolini.
Career
Giorgia Meloni was born on January 15, 1977 in Rome. Her leftist father had walked out of the family when she was very young. Her mother was pro-right, who raised Giorgia in a working-class neighbourhood of Rome. At the age of 15, Meloni joined the youth wing of the Movimento Sociale Italiano (MSI) (the neofascist Italian Social Movement). In 1990, when the MSI rebranded itself as the Alleanza Nazionale (AN) (National Alliance), Meloni became the president of its youth wing. In 2006, at the age of 29, she was a member of parliament. In 2008, when the AN was in alliance with the Forza Italia, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi appointed Meloni as the Minister of Youth in his cabinet, making her Italy’s youngest minister ever.
Italy grappled with a severe recession in the aftermath of the global financial crisis in 2012. At that time, she co-founded the Brothers of Italy after exiting from the former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s party. Brothers of Italy included members from the MSI, created by the supporters of Mussolini. Starting from 2 per cent in the 2013 elections, the Brothers of Italy gained a quick margin of 26 per cent by 2022, surprising other traditional parties of Italy.
Meloni’s Election Campaign
Giorgia Meloni’s political slogan was “God, family and homeland”. During her campaign, she assured voters that she would keep Italy’s debt under control. She also spoke in support of ‘natural families’ and opposed to the LGBTQ groups. Giorgia even campaigned on a platform that was openly anti-immigrant and anti-LGBTQI. She proposed to amend Italy’s Constitution to introduce a directly elected president in place of current parliamentary democratic system.
Giorgia also promised tighter border control by establishing EU-managed centres outside the bloc to evaluate asylum applications and blocking boat landings. She promised to diversify energy supplies. Using nuclear energy to implement a plan for energy self-sufficiency by relying on natural gas is also under consideration. Meloni’s government plans to deviate from former PM Mario Draghi’s reform plans, which would lend her a strong hand in the government.
Challenges
One of the first challenges is to create a budget plan by the end of this year which will be presented to the Italian Parliament and the European Union. The Brothers of Italy have shown that they intend to put Italy first and regional issues on the backburner which means that the government is more Italy-centric than Euro-centric.
Significance of New Coalition for Europe
This victory has alarmed Europe for certain reasons. For example, the Brothers of Italy has evolved from Mussolini and its members are pro-neo-fascist origins. Although Ms Meloni seems to be inclined towards EU, Italian nationalism has always been the underlining priority. Italy has been one of the most volatile countries in terms of political stability. That’s why Europe does not wish to see yet another government coalition break. Therefore, the dilemma continues over the political stability and cooperation.
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