Far right lead in Italy ahead of European parliamentary elections: Euronews poll
Giorgia Meloni.
European elections are right around the corner.
In Italy, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing Brothers of Italy party looks set to win the most votes in the EU Parliament elections between 8 and 9 June.
That’s according to a Euronews poll from the end of April.
It found that support for the party remains stable at 28 per cent.
The poll also predicted that the centre-left Democratic Party will come in second place, followed by the populist Five Star Movement.
Support for these two parties is on the rise, however.
Both the Democratic Party and Five Star Movement made slight gains compared to the previous month, according to the Euronews poll.
Right-wing rivals Lega and Forza Italia will have to fight, meanwhile. The poll found they would bag just under 8 per cent of the vote.
Meloni’s strategy
PM Giorgia Meloni has personally led her party’s election campaign.
Analysts say the strategy is to achieve high voter turnout in order to win as many seats as possible in the EU parliament and influence the formation of future coalitions.
Her Brothers of Italy party is part of the European Conservatives and Reformers (ECR) group in the European Parliament.
Meloni’s goal, observers claim, is to hold the key to creating a grand centre-right coalition with the European People’s Party – something also desired by outgoing European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
However, before entering the big European game, Meloni needs to overcome two obstacles in her own country.
One is her rival Matteo Salvini, an influential partner in the European Parliament of Marine Le Pen from France’s far right.
The second problem is the strengthening of the left.
If the Democratic Party, part of the Socialists and Democrats group, can common ground with the Five Star Movement, led by former Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, the left and centre-left forces could create a strong structure in Italy’s fractious political landscape.