A vote that will sanction the future of the last red fort. What will decide not only the next five years of Florence, the ratings on the tram, in parks and promenade parks and on the green shield. But it will also (and above all) establish the state of health of the Democratic Party. Because Elly Schlein, after the electoral defeats suffered last week, really cannot lose even the Tuscan capital. At the moment, there are few fixed points for April 2024. The Democrats seem to have convinced themselves to organize the primaries (albeit amid much grumbling). Whether party or coalition still remains a mystery.
The current mayor, Dario Nardella, is at the end of his second term and therefore cannot be re-elected. Rosa Maria Di Giorgi, Sara Funaro, Mirko Dormentoni and Andrea Giorgio are his possible successors. The first, big doubt, concerns the role of Italia Viva. Which in Florence has a very different weight than the national scene. According to palatial rumors, Renzi’s movement would be willing to run alone, supporting the all-female couple, Stefania Saccardi – Cecilia Del Re.
And the center right? After years of bitter defeats, of elections whose outcome was obvious and predictable, the moderates have the opportunity (thanks to the extraordinary driving force of Giorgia Meloni) to play the game. Again, the ideas are far from clear. There are those who, in the leadership of the Brothers of Italy (the party that will actually bear the name), open a window for an agreement with the centrists. “It would be an innovative and winning idea. That would guarantee us an almost discounted ballot.” The party’s most identitary wing doesn’t even want to know about it. “We can’t distort ourselves like that. Our values are non-negotiable.”
If this second way prevails, the (almost) certain name brought as a dowry to the allies of Lega and Forza Italia will be that of Jacopo Cellai. A man with a lot of experience, but, point out the malicious, “too rightist” to be able to intercept the centrist votes, essential to play the game in the ballot box. Amidst a thousand doubts, one certainty: if the conservatives (really) want to have any hope of winning, they will have to learn from the past. There are no more candidates submitted in February. It takes an election campaign of at least six months to try to take the last red fort.
Source: IL Tempo
Emma Fitzgerald is an accomplished political journalist and author at The Nation View. With a background in political science and international relations, she has a deep understanding of the political landscape and the forces that shape it.
