European elections in Italy: empty polling stations, full beaches

Rome. In Italy, polling stations opened their doors at 3 p.m. on Saturday, but there were no long lines, on the contrary. However, on the Via del Mare, which leads from Rome to the seaside resort of Ostia, there was a kilometer-long traffic jam in the morning: the beautiful summer weather attracted tens of thousands of Romans to the beaches. Most other seaside resorts in Belpaese reported a similar level of activity. Voter turnout in Italy’s elections is expected to reach a new low this weekend.

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European elections in Italy: voting offers little excitement

The very low interest in the European elections, at least on Saturday, is also due to the fact that the mood in Italy does not promise much excitement. The shift to the right took place here five years ago, when Matteo Salvini’s right-wing extremist League won 34.3 percent of the vote. Meanwhile, most former Lega voters have defected to Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s post-fascist Fratelli d’Italia, but overall these two right-wing parties will face losses this weekend, according to polls.

Only after the elections will things get interesting: Giorgia Meloni, head of the right-wing Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group in the European Parliament, will have to decide whether she will join forces with the still right-wing Identitarians (ID) group, which includes French RN leader Marine Le Pen and Lega leader Salvini are among them. In the final days of the election campaign, Le Pen launched a charm offensive towards Meloni, but so far her response has been rather cool. Meloni, a convinced Atlanticist, finds it difficult to accept Le Pen and Salvini’s close relationship with Putin.