The helmet, understood as an exasperated and belligerent posture, is not present this time in Giorgia Meloni’s speech from Pescara, which has little programmatic, but a lot of political: the opening of her electoral campaign and her entry into the field at the European Championships. There is the plebiscite announced, on himself and on his government, which, ultimately, are the same thing as the government is a one woman show, according to the methods that are most congenial to it: the usual and culturally “minority” narrative , of “us and them”. And we are as usual: stubbornly, Giorgia Meloni presents herself, in every dispute, as the leader of a “historic” revenge of an excluded and mistreated pole, rather than as the prime minister who wants to speak to all Italians, even those of the other part.
The truth is that this transformation of the European vote into an Italian mid-term, in the name of personalisation, takes place, for her, in a context of substantial tranquility. Giorgia Meloni is, objectively, stronger than two years ago because, essentially, she is not challenged. And she doesn’t feel politically threatened about anything. Nor within his coalition, where Salvini, who had proposed himself as the “guardian of the revolution” from the right, is on the ropes and has to rent Vannacci, with all that already entails in terms of malaise within the League. Her competitor on the other side, Elly Schlein – nothing but symmetry – finds herself challenged in her own camp by Conte and weakened in her own party. And perhaps, sooner or later, a debate will have to be opened on how much more reformism would be needed for the alternative than anti-fascist chatter which, moreover, gives Giorgia Meloni that license to be a chastisement that her people do not disdain. The general context, then, could not be more favourable: there is no Bengodi of which, with an excessive dose of complacency and self-praise, the Prime Minister spoke, but there is no economic-social collapse of the country and, in this international situation between Ukraine and the Middle East, no one can bet that Italy will derail. All the protagonists of European politics are more exposed than ours: Macron challenged by Marine Le Pen, Scholz struggling with his complicated coalition, Sanchez hostage by the Catalan autonomists.
Precisely the weakening of the old world of European political families allows it to remain in its “middle world” of, so to speak, acceptable populism. And not to fully accelerate the evolution towards a conservative party now. This balance is better for her, in which she aims to be decisive in post-vote negotiations, more than a radical populist turn in Europe or Trump’s victory, in the face of which she would be called upon to resolve some fundamental contradictions. That, first of all, of keeping alive some cornerstones of an almost anti-system narrative while adhering to the fundamentals of the system, starting from the chosen slogan: “Let’s change Europe”, the opposite of the exit proposed only a few years ago. In short, it is the perfect context for the all-in without stress: the consolidation plan of the “Giorgia” brand, as a stage to prepare, with serenity, the “Giorgia after Giorgia”, or the policies of 2027, regardless of whether it is approved or not the premiership. If the polls confirm it, the premiership is already there: the center-right c’est moi. And he spoke to those people.
