Five Star Movement
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Italy: Salvini’s tactical mistake puts the left in power
After the European elections this year, Matteo Salvini and his Lega party were riding high. Many expected he would capitalize on the wave of support and call for new elections. When he finally did, parties on the left moved against him. With a savvy political move from former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, the center- and far left have taken control of the government. A battle over new election rules, however, mean the tumult in Italian politics is far from over.
EU elections shake the stability of Italy’s coalition
The European Parliament elections in May upended the balance of support for the parties in Italy's coalition government, with Lega far outpacing the Five Star Movement. Moreover, the country's budget imbalances increasingly require solutions that will be politically unpopular. Rank-and-file members of both parties could benefit from new elections, but ...
Italian gold and populist publicity
Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini has revived a five-year-old proposal to use his country’s gold reserves to bring down the budget deficit. The idea is problematic for several reasons – but that is not the point. Mr. Salvini is likely using this controversial plan to make headlines and burnish ...
GIS Dossier: The Italian case
Politically and financially, Italy has come to be regarded as a weak link in the European Union. Its shaky banks and enormous public debt almost blew apart the euro area during the debt crisis of 2010-2012, and could still do so. Its government, a marriage of populists on the left ...
Opinion: Italy at risk
Italy’s new left-right government is a political experiment that could turn out in one of two ways: either a disguised version of business as usual, or a complete disaster. Many observers assumed that Lega leader Matteo Salvini would manufacture the disaster on purpose to take Italy out of the euro. ...
