There are eight Apulian municipalities that return to vote today and tomorrow for the run-offs and the choice of new mayors, spotlights on the two capitals Bari and Lecce.
Today polling stations are open from 7am to 11pm, while on Monday from 7am to 3pm.
The counting of ballots will then begin.
In Bari the challenge is between the centre-left candidate Vito Leccese and the centre-right candidate, Fabio Romito: the former came close to victory in the first round with 48.02% of the votes (73,735 preferences); his opponent, however, stopped at 29.12% (44,709 preferences).
Leccese was supported in the first round by 7 lists, including the Pd and the Greens, to which are now added the 6 of Michele Laforgia, candidate of M5s and SI. Romito was able to count on the support of nine lists, including Fratelli d’Italia, Forza Italia, UDC, Noi Moderati. The symbol of the League is absent despite Romito being a member of the Northern League. In the first round (when there was also voting for the European elections) the turnout was 58.17%, for a total of 145,985 votes out of 278,609 eligible residents.
In Lecce there is a clash between Adriana Poli Bortone for the centre-right (10 lists in support), who missed out on victory in the first round by 24 votes, the number needed to obtain 50% + 1, and the outgoing mayor Carlo Salvemini (9 lists) of the centre-left.
For the definitive result, the two candidates had to wait for the end of the verification procedures by the Electoral Commission to verify some inconsistencies in the minutes filed relating to four sections.
Poli Bortone obtained 49.95% of the votes (24,749 preferences), Carlo Salvemini 46.73% (23,430 votes). Of the 78,042 total voters, 68.53% went to the polls in the first round in Lecce. The other six municipalities on the ballot are Putignano and Santeramo in Colle in the Bari area; Copertino in Salento; Manfredonia, San Giovanni Rotondo and San Severo nel Foggiano.
