The regional councilor for Productive Activities wins by a landslide with over 121 thousand votes in the Islands constituency Edy Tamajo. First Ras of preferences, he is Forza Italia, together with his fellow Councilor for the Economy Marco Falcone and its 100 thousand votes, the first party in Sicily to gain two seats in the European Parliament. For Falcone it didn’t matter much to be on the list of “unpresentables” drawn up by the parliamentary Anti-Mafia commission, because he was on trial following an investigation into the autonomous public housing institute of Palermo: he left behind Caterina Chinnici, head of the list sponsored by the leader Antonio Tajani, first of the non-elected with over 93 thousand votes, while in the previous European elections, as an independent candidate in the Democratic Party, she obtained 113,248 preferences. The support of Totò Cuffaro’s DC was not enough Massimo Dell’Utriwho as a member of Noi Moderates placed fourth in the Forza Italia list with just over 69 thousand votes.
Two seats also for the island’s second largest party, Fratelli d’Italia, which also in this case elects an “unpresentable”: Giuseppe Milazzoinvolved in the same investigation as Falcone at the time when he was leader of the Berlusconi group at Ars, with almost 65 thousand votes, is second only to the prime minister Giorgia Meloni who will obviously renounce the European seat. And he goes to Strasbourg Ruggero Razza, he was also sent to trial: in 2021, when he was regional health councilor, he was hit by the judicial cyclone over the fake data linked to Covid deaths.
In the Democratic Party he rejoices Giuseppe Lupo, than after the leader Elly Schlein (over 84 thousand preferences) had his personal revenge by receiving almost 50 thousand votes. Two years ago he was excluded from the lists for the Regional elections by the Democratic Party, his party which he had also led as secretary, and by the candidate for governor Chinnici (later defeated and moved to Forza Italia) because he was included by the Anti-Mafia commission among the “unpresentables” for a pending trial for corruption from which he was recently acquitted “because the fact does not exist”. Meanwhile he has been elected to the Palermo City Council which he will now leave.
He doesn’t make it by a hair’s breadth, however, Pietro Bartolo, a doctor from the island of Lampedusa, the first of the non-elected, who takes leave of the European Parliament despite having gathered over 44 thousand preferences. Only in sixth place, in the PD list, is the Rai journalist Lidia Tilotta with just over 37 thousand preference. Before her also the Sardinian Angela Maria Quaquero which takes 42,340. Tilotta, however, is the most voted member of the center-left in Palermo: over 16 thousand votes, double the tally of the former mayor Leoluca Orlando. Which however, in the entire Sicily-Sardinia constituency, obtains a total of 18,544 preferences in the Green-Left Alliance list: they could be worth a seat in Europe, given that Ilaria Salis And Mimmo Lucano, who received more votes than him, respectively with over 50 thousand and over 25 thousand preferences, will probably opt for a seat in other constituencies. Orlando, already an MEP thirty years ago with the Network, was not re-elected in 1999.
Among the 5 Stars it comes out on top with almost 65 thousand preferences Giuseppe Antoci, former president of the Nebrodi Park, chosen by Giuseppe Conte as the anti-mafia standard-bearer of the Movement in the European elections. However, two other anti-mafia icons remain at stake: Sonia Alfanodaughter of the journalist Beppe Alfano killed by the mafia on 8 January 1993, former European parliamentarian until 2014, who in the Action list almost reached 5 thousand votes, second after Carlo Calenda (7,973 votes), and the witness of justice Piera Aiellowith 3,611 votes at the bottom of the leader’s Freedom list Cateno De Lucawhich collects almost 70 thousand even if the list does not exceed the 4 percent barrier.
In the same list Ismaele La Vardera, vice-president of the regional Anti-Mafia commission, stops at just over 20 thousand preferences. For the League he wins the seat Raffaele Stancanelli, outgoing FdI MEP and former mayor of Catania, with over 44 thousand preferences. Supported at the European elections by the former vice-president of the Region Luca Sammartino, accused of corruption last April by the Catania prosecutor’s office, he won the internal challenge with Annalisa Tardino, former regional coordinator of the League, who with 17,680 preferences was not confirmed in Strasbourg. Stancanelli also beats the general Roberto Vannacciwhich stops at just over 35 thousand votes.
Flop for the former rector of the University of Palermo Fabrizio Micariwhich in the United States of Europe list brings together only 4,500 preferences. Michele Santorowhose Peace, Earth and Dignity list does not exceed the 4 percent threshold, but collects over 21 thousand votes, more than Orlando but also than leaders like Calenda and Matteo Renzistuck above 15 thousand.
