Right-wing bloc wins Italian parliamentary elections, Meloni’s largest party

In Italy’s parliamentary elections, the right-wing bloc, made up of Fratelli d’Italia, Lega and Forza Italia, received between 41 and 45 percent of the vote, according to a polling day poll by Italy’s public broadcaster Rai. According to the Italian electoral system, this means that they have enough votes for a majority.

Fratelli d’Italia, the radical right-wing party Giorgia Meloni, has emerged as the winner of Italy’s parliamentary elections, according to opinion polls. According to polls, the organization Fratelli d’Italia received between 22 and 26 percent of the vote. In all likelihood, the 45-year-old Meloni will become prime minister. She will then be the first female Prime Minister of Italy.

The party’s victory was not surprising: Fratelli d’Italia led in the opinion polls and it was expected that about 25 percent of the vote would go to this party. However, given that in Italy it is forbidden to publish opinion polls in the last two weeks before the elections, it was questionable whether the party would eventually maintain this lead.

Exit polls give an indication of the end result. In the 2013 and 2018 elections, there were differences between opinion polls and the final result.

Meloni’s party was part of a right-wing bloc in this election along with the right-wing populist Lega, led by Matteo Salvini, and Forza Italia, the party of former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. Lega got between 8.5 and 12.5 percent of the vote and Forza Italia between 6 and 8 percent.

The Five Star Movement, led by former Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, managed to get between 13.5 and 17.5 percent of the vote. Conte’s party was the biggest winner in the previous elections in 2018, but due to internal conflicts, its popularity has waned.

Italians voted today for the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies. The polls closed at 11 pm. The participation rate was 64.4 percent. This is about 10 percent less than the last election in 2018.