Schlein: “Extraordinary victory for the Democratic Party and the progressive camp”. Flop of the right, La Russa: “We need to rethink an electoral law for administrative elections”
A twist in the counting of the ballots for the local elections. In the fourteen capitals, theater of battles to the last vote, the center-left won victory in Florence, Bari, Potenza, Campobasso, Perugia, Vibo Valentia and Cremona, while the center-right was forced to settle for Caltanissetta, Lecce, Urbino, Rovigo and Vercelli. First civic citizen in Avellino and Verbania.
The dem Sara Funaro she was elected mayor of Florence in the duel with Eike Schmidt. “I’m a little excited, I feel the great emotion of these months, of being the first citizen of Florence“, his first words. The outgoing man is celebrating Dario Nardella: “I am proud to be able to hand over my seat to a woman like Sara: she was a great councilor, she will be a great mayor“. So, instead, Schmidt: “From today I am the leader of the opposition in the City Council. We gained ground in the run-off, a result that replicates that of Galli against Renzi in 2009. I thank everyone who committed themselves to me. We would also like to carry forward the proposed projects by the opposition”.
The same goes in Bari, where Vito Leccese he got the better of the centre-right candidate Fabio Romitoand in Cremona, Leonardo Virgil he passed it Alessandro Portesani. Photo finish victory for Virgilio, elected with 50.37 percent, with his rival stuck at 49.63 percent. Challenge also won in Potenza, where the candidate Vincenzo Telesca has a large lead on Francesco Fanelli, candidate of the centre-right. A reversal compared to the first round, where Fanelli had received 40.6 percent while Telesca had 32.4 percent. In Campobasso the centre-left candidate Maria Luisa Strong he won the challenge of the run-offs, but will not be able to have a majority of seats in the Council. In the first round, in fact, the lists supporting the centre-right mayoral candidate De Benedittis reached 52.7 percent.
Sara Funaro
The centre-right instead secures the Rovigo challenge. When 34 out of 55 sections were scrutinized, the coalition candidate, also supported by Action, Valeria Citizen he is ahead with 57.27 percent over the outgoing mayor of the M5s Edoardo Gaffeo with 42.73 percent. Center-right towards victory also in Caltanissetta: after 26 out of 56 sections, the candidate Walter Tesauro (55.35 percent) is clearly ahead of its centre-left rival Annalisa Petitto (44.65 percent). The centre-right also confirms the mayor of Vercelli in the run-offs: Roberto Scheda he won with 54.19 percent. Victory of Adriana Poli Bortone in Lecce: the centre-right candidate overtook the outgoing centre-left mayor Carlo Salvemini. The same goes for Urbino, where the outgoing mayor Maurizio Gambini (51.96 percent) prevails over his Democratic rival Federico Scaramucci (48.04 percent).
In Avellino Laura Nargi (civic list) subverted the results of the first round: the outgoing deputy mayor received 51.84 percent, overtaking the centre-left candidate Antonio Gengaro, stuck at 48.16 percent. In Gela, however, victory Terentian Di Stefano with around 60 percent, nothing for the opponent to do Grace Rita Cosentino. The civic Giandomenico Albertella he was elected mayor of Verbania with 51.86 percent of the preferences while the center-left candidate Riccardo Brezza stopped at 48.14 percent.
“An extraordinary victory for the Democratic Party and for the progressive camp, which gives us hope and momentum for the coming months. A victory that demonstrates that the right can be beaten by working well together. We won in all 6 regional capitals and we took three of these from the right. And among other things we have 3 new female mayors, it was one of our goals”, are the words of the secretary of the Democratic Party Elly Schlein. The leader of the Dem spoke in a conference in which she commented on the result of the Democratic Party and the center-left in the runoffs.
Vito Leccese
The turnout in the second round of the local elections, at 3pm today, was 47.71 percent. According to what emerges from the data of the Interior Ministry in reference to 3,049 of the 3,586 overall sections, the turnout of these ballots at 3.00 pm is 47.6 percent. The turnout recorded at 11pm yesterday by the Interior Ministry in the 3586 sections where voting was held for the first day of the ballots was 37 percent. Previously, 27.89 percent at 7.00 pm and 11.98 percent at 12.00 pm.
A rather sharp drop compared to the first round, when voting also took place on Saturday and not on Monday.
Yesterday the President of the Senate Ignazio La Russa commented angrily: “Beyond the results of the second round, who won and who lost, a fact emerges that should make us reflect: the double round is not saving and actually increases abstention. From 62.83% in the first round, it fell well below 50%, that is, to 47.71%. In some cases, you are elected with only 20% of the votes of those entitled to vote. Sometimes, the person with fewer absolute votes than their opponent had in the first round is even elected. Unacceptable. We need to rethink an electoral law for administrative elections – he observed – perhaps following the example of the Sicilian double shift or inserting suitable corrective measures to avoid distortions like these and increase participation“.
Photo © Imagoeconomica
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