Why was Giorgia Meloni elected?

Other topics: Italy, Giorgia Meloni

Short answer:

Giorgia Meloni was elected as prime minister of Italy in 2022 because of three primary reasons:

• Social discontent on previous government policies and high inflation
• The exit of populist parties from the previous government coalition and the failure of the president to patch the political divide
• Lack of pre-election coalitions among opposing parties

Giorgia Meloni is the leader of a far-right Italian political party called Fratelli d'Italia (Brothers of Italy). Her party got elected on 114 seats paving their way to victory in the 2022 Italian parliamentarian elections. She is the first female prime minister in the entire Italian history.

Several reasons catapulted an otherwise unknown journalist turned politician to the highest office in Italy.

Higher cost of living caused public discontent in Italy

Mario Draghi, ex-prime minister of Italy, approved policies that caused the privatization of public assets, spending cuts, and other austere conditions. This was exacerbated by global inflation caused by supply and resource disruptions. It plummeted the popularity of the previous government.

Populist political parties exited the previous ruling coalition

Italian populist political party Five Star Movement announced their exit from the coalition as the legislature will end in 2023. Their departure clearly indicated their split from another Italian left political party, the Democratic Party. It became one of the reasons left and center parties could not reconcile their differences.

Italian president's failed to salvage the political turmoil

Despite his efforts, President Sergio Mattarella failed to break the deadlock between the Italian political parties to resolve the situation. It resulted in the Brothers of Italy gaining ground against the rest of the parties.

Other parties failed to form the pre-election alliances

The center-left parties could not reach a consensus to form a pre-election alliance.

The Italian election mechanism is both proportional and majoritarian. The electoral system favors parties that negotiate pre-election pacts and create massive coalitions. However, the Democrats rejected an alliance with the other political party Five Star Movement, due to its participation in bringing down Mario Draghi's administration.

The Democrats colluded with the Green Left, so the centrist "third coalition" established by two minor parties rejected the Democrats. They entered a temporary coalition only to break later. This political divide and irreconcilable differences ensured the clear win for the right-wing alliance with about two-thirds of the seats in the Italian parliament with over 40 percent of the total vote count.