Meloni’s sea. She secures approval for the electoral law and saves the summer. A celebration is planned to mark the government’s record

The beach bucket and parasol are saved. At 11.40 on a midsummer Thursday, Giorgia Meloni breathes a sigh of relief. “At least this one.” Summer (for now) is saved. The centre-right secures initial approval for the electoral law. After the blow dealt by the preference votes, this was by no means a foregone conclusion. So much so that in his explanation of vote, Giovanni Donzelli hedges his bets: “If this law passes...”. In the end, there are 217 votes in favour. Faces relax, ties loosen. Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, Minister for the Environment and Energy Security, is already looking ahead in an interview with Il Foglio: “We’ll pass the nuclear energy bill by December.” But there is still some fallout within the majority. Nordio is reprimanded by Mattarella over the potential pardon for Roggero. Meanwhile, Meloni is “reflecting” and preparing a celebration for the government’s record-breaking milestone on 4 September.

It was a decisive day. Having fallen behind in the preference votes, Meloni viewed the final vote on the electoral law – also a secret ballot – almost as a last-ditch effort of the parliamentary term. In the Transatlantico corridor, before the vote, the FdI group leader and her Forza Italia colleague, Bignami and Costa, could be seen chatting intently. Paolo Barelli, Raffaele Nevi and the other ‘Tajanei’ burst into raucous laughter. Is the majority preparing to celebrate? In reality, no one really believes in an upset. We approach the Minister for the Environment and Energy Security, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin. “Confident? Sure.” And he goes on to give details of the possible relaunch of the government’s agenda. “I’ve got everything ready for the nuclear energy bill. We can get it done by Christmas.” Proof that the timeframe isn’t as tight as it seems. Although another minister, Francesco Lollobrigida, appears more realistic: “The wound inflicted by the mavericks? It seems to me that at least we’ve held on to the majority today.” Giovanni Donzelli takes the floor in the Chamber to say that the electoral law will ensure there are no more coalitions that “last less than the couples on Temptation Island”. Then, having secured the green light, he paused to greet, in a spirit of ecumenism, virtually the entire parliamentary spectrum, including Giuseppe Conte, who teased him: “That sounded like a farewell speech, as if it were the last day of the parliamentary term. Are we heading for an election?” Reply: “Don’t worry, you’ve still got a year or so to go.” Approval was granted despite several absences within the League (around 15 per cent of MPs), including the rapporteur Igor Iezzi (for personal reasons). Meanwhile, at the Senate, new tensions are emerging within the majority, with rather unprintable remarks directed by Meloni supporter Zaffini at League member Centinaio. And what of Vannacci? We’ll have to see whether consensus on the preferences will materialise in any way.

The Prime Minister is keeping her distance from what is happening less than 100 metres from Palazzo Chigi. Whilst on the day of the amendment on preferential votes she had chosen to ‘put herself on the line’ in advance, accusing the opposition and subsequently ‘the quagmire’ of standing in the way of change, in this instance she has chosen not to comment. The disappointment and resentment towards her allies are still too fresh. Yet Salvini, speaking suddenly from Bari – whilst keeping his distance from the electoral law “which is further from me than quantum physics” – has revived the idea of preferential voting in the Senate: “I hope we can salvage it”. It is a gesture of deference towards the Prime Minister, coming at the very moment when the preliminary agreements on autonomy are given the green light in the Senate – though it has no effect, given that Meloni is still plotting her revenge. Her aim now is to remove the Stabilicum from the public debate. Because “it’s all very well to fight over preferential votes, but nobody would understand spending the summer talking about electoral law”. The bill will not reach the Senate chamber before September. Thus, plans are being made for what is being described as a season “anything but a summer holiday”. The government must press ahead, starting with the most pressing economic issues (new relief measures in the energy sector will also have to be decided). The aim is to get the Budget Bill through without a hitch. But that’s not all: yesterday, the Prime Minister returned to the subject of education and the Invalsi results (“the best news of the day”), on which the government plans to take action via the Valditara decree. Meanwhile, the issue of security remains a constant theme in the Prime Minister’s recent statements. Having saved the parliamentary term will allow Meloni to look forward with confidence to 4 September, when the government will officially become the longest-serving in the history of the Republic. Work is underway in Via della Scrofa to organise a ‘two-day event’ (Friday and Saturday) to celebrate the record, most likely at a seaside resort in the south, with Giorgia Meloni naturally as the guest of honour. Invitations will be extended to the entire coalition, including the two deputy prime ministers. It will take place at a venue similar to the one chosen to launch the Prime Minister’s candidacy for the European elections (which was Pescara at the time). The message is: despite everything, despite the League and Forza Italia, we are still here. A sort of miracle.