ROME: Italians voted in the second round of municipal polls yesterday, with Rome’s right-wing mayor Gianni Alemanno facing a stiff challenge from his centre-left rival in otherwise lacklustre elections.
Little known on the national scene, challenger Ignazio Marino picked up 43 percent of the vote in the first round two weeks ago, while Alemanno, a former neo-fascist, came in second with 30 percent.
Victory for Marino would be a shot in the arm for the centre-left Democratic Party (PD), which lost ground in this year’s inconclusive general elections, while Silvio Berlusconi’s centre-right People of Freedom Party (PDL) has fared poorly in previous recent municipal votes.
“I have the full support of the PDL, and Silvio Berlusconi has entered the ring using his preferred means, which is television,” Alemanno said after winning the endorsement of the media baron and former prime minister.
“The whole party is working to win this election,” he said. “Everyone knows that we can’t leave Rome to Marino. The future of the right depends on my victory.” The two-day vote in 67 towns and cities ends at 1300 GMT today, with results expected in the evening.
But turnout is at record lows, reflecting deep voter disenchantment with politicians after the two-month stalemate that followed the February vote. In Rome, the figure was at just eight percent at noon as the sunshine lured voters to the capital’s nearby beaches.
AFP
