The Story:
Two unconventional Italian political parties, the Five Star Movement and the Northern League, have been trying over recent weeks to form a coalition government. That effort, though, has precipitated a constitutional crisis and (at the least) resolution will require a new ‘snap’ round of elections.
The Background:
The President of Italy, Sergio Mattarella, has vetoed one of the cabinet choices of the proposed coalition, and of its proposed prime minister, Giuseppe Conte. Conte wants Paolo Savona as his finance minister, and Mattarella finds this flatly unacceptable.
Savona has been outspoken in believing that it is a mistake for Italy to remain within the Euro zone. Mattarella, on the other hand, believes that any Italian exit from the common currency would be a disaster.
The Thing to Know:
The new election is likely to prove in effect a referendum on Italy’s relationship to the rest of Europe. The leader of the Northern League, Matteo Salvini, has said: “Today Italy is not free; it is occupied financially by Germans, French, and eurocrats.”
