ROME
\nItalians voted Sunday in national elections in which the far-right Brothers of Italy party — led by Giorgia Meloni — appears poised to make big gains after the collapse of two governments since the last election.
\nHer ultra-conservative party, whose origins lie in post-war fascism, currently controls just two of Italy\u2019s 20 regions, having won just 4.5% of the vote in the 2018 elections.
\nBut since the collapse of former Prime Minister Mario Draghi\u2019s coalition earlier this year — which triggered the snap election — the Brothers of Italy have only surged in popularity, with recent polling suggesting nearly a quarter of the electorate backs her.
\nBy midday, voter turnout in Italy was slightly lower than during the previous election in 2018, according to data published Sunday by the Italian Interior Ministry.
\nPolls remain open until 11 p.m. local (5 p.m. local). The 2018 vote resulted in a hung parliament.
\nMeloni, a 45-year-old mother from Rome who has campaigned under the slogan \u201cGod, country and family,\u201d leads a party whose agenda is rooted in Euroskepticism, anti-immigration policies, and one that has also proposed weakening LGBTQ and abortion rights.
\nHer astronomical rise in popularity is a reflection of Italy\u2019s longstanding rejection of mainstream politics, seen most recently with the country\u2019s support of anti-establishment parties such as the Five Star Movement and Matteo Salvini\u2019s League.
\nMeloni\u2019s partners in Italy\u2019s center-right political alliance, Salvini and Forza Italia\u2019s Silvio Berlusconi, are partly responsible for her popularity.
\nIn 2008, as prime minister, Berlusconi named her as his sports minister, making her the youngest minister to hold that position.
\nAnd in the 2018 election, Meloni was Salvini\u2019s junior partner in the center-right alliance. But this time, she\u2019s in charge, and has hinted that, if elected, she may not give Salvini a ministerial portfolio — which would strip him of the power to potentially bring her government down.
\nTrailing behind in recent polling is the center-left coalition, led by the left-wing Democratic Party and centrist parties +Europe. The parties formed an alliance with another centrist party, Azione, following Draghi\u2019s resignation to counter a lurch to the right, but it broke down shortly after it was formed, further opening the door to Meloni.
\nThe election build-up has been dominated by hot-button issues including Italy\u2019s cost-of-living crisis, a 209-billion euro package from the European Covid-19 recovery fund and the country\u2019s support for Ukraine.
\nMeloni differs from Berlusconi and Salvini on a number of issues, including Ukraine, and has no connection to Russian President Vladimir Putin, unlike her partners, who have said they would like to review sanctions against Russia because of their impact on the Italian economy. Meloni has instead been steadfast in her support for defending Ukraine.
\nThe Democratic Party, led by former prime minister Enrico Letta, strongly opposes Putin and his war in Ukraine, openly supports LGBTQ rights, including same-sex marriage — which was made legal in 2016 — and legislation to combat homophobia.
\nIf her party wins, Meloni could also become Italy\u2019s first female prime minister. However her politics do not mean that she is necessarily interested in advancing women\u2019s rights.
\nEmiliana De Blasio, adviser for diversity and inclusion at LUISS University in Rome told CNN that Meloni\u2019s politics are more important than her gender, but that she has not proven herself to be a feminist first.
\n\u201cWe need to reflect on the fact that Giorgia Meloni is not raising up at all questions on women\u2019s rights and empowerment in general,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ROME Italians voted Sunday in national elections in which the far-right Brothers of Italy party — led by Giorgia Meloni — appears poised to make big gains after the collapse of two governments since the last election. Her ultra-conservative party, whose origins lie in post-war fascism, currently controls just two of Italy\u2019s 20 regions, having […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":285649,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-285623","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n