“We need to change course in Pontida, or it will be tough to revive the League.” Says Romeo

Activists in Lombardy regard him as a prophet: the saviour of the homeland. That is to say, of the Lega. “I simply sense the strong desire of the party’s grassroots,” Massimiliano Romeo, the Carroccio’s leader in the Senate, tells Il Foglio. “I have felt this responsibility ever since I was elected regional secretary. We must rediscover our identity. Do you remember the slogan from the days of the Senatùr? ‘Neither black nor red, free with Bossi’.” And to think that, until recently, they were flirting with Vannacci. “But between the original and the poor copy, people will always choose the former: we have never been a far-right force. The national shift is all well and good, but we must return to being the voice of the local communities. Starting with the next Pontida.”

And that is where many issues will come to a head. Romeo, together with Governor Fontana and the north-eastern duo Zaia and Fedriga, has long been calling for a new Lega with collective leadership. No more ‘one-man party’, as the ‘Salvini premier’ logo suggests. This is why, with every passing day, the Carroccio is seething from within. “It is important that there be an opportunity for discussion that takes these demands into account,” sums up the senator, without ever mentioning the leader by name. The round-table discussion among the party’s leading figures could take place as early as next week, certainly before 20 September: the date of the Pontida rally. “Which remains sacred to us. We are working as always towards the rally. Many party members are writing to me: there is a sense of great anticipation, fuelled by the possibility of a strong signal of renewal. If that were to materialise, as we all hope, it would be easier to engage supporters”. Otherwise? “In the event of disappointment, the situation would become complicated. I make no secret of that. The path to our revival lies in standing in the upcoming general election as a united team. Let’s prepare for a highly polarised vote: Meloni on one side, the centre-left on the other, and then the outsider Vannacci. What can we offer that the others don’t have? A group of experienced local government officials and leaders who have set an example of good governance in many regions. And this example can be replicated across the whole country.”

Romeo’s appeal is also conveyed through his latest book: “Fare la Lega. Agenda per il rinnovamento” (Rubettino, pp 144). The cover features a green shirt and Alberto da Giussano in the background. “These pages took shape whilst I was listening to the party’s grassroots during the race for the leadership. They contain the demands of long-standing activists, but also the Lega’s achievements in government: autonomy, security, the economy – that is, the goals of Calderoli, Salvini and Giorgetti. And they conclude with some proposals for the future: citizens are tired of politics and of promises that cannot be kept.” Including the bridge over the Strait? “It is essential to restore the central importance of pragmatism, fiscal federalism and the ‘northern question’ – just as there is a ‘southern question’: the conflict between the two, as Bossi taught us, was created by Rome as part of a ‘divide and rule’ strategy. Even the business community is asking us to protect the interests of the north. It is the part of Italy that has lost the most purchasing power in recent years: an Istat figure we cannot ignore.”

Is this how we can recover from the 3 per cent risk? “Focusing on who we are is the way to regain our recognisability,” Romeo is convinced. “We have always been a post-ideological movement, taking a pragmatic view of people’s everyday problems without chasing theories that have never been part of our history. Last year in Pontida I presented the Lombardy Charter, a manifesto to restore the region’s political, economic and cultural centrality: I hope similar initiatives will emerge from all the other regions too.” This would, however, mark a U-turn compared to the ‘patriots’ era. “But this is also the difference between the League and Vannacci. Salvini has shown that many things can be achieved, such as border defence. And Maroni had proposed the famous points-based residence permit – that is, a bonus for immigrants who are well integrated into the community and a penalty in the event of crimes and various offences. Vannacci, on the other hand, talks about remigration. So citizens rightly ask: who would then validate the repatriation measures? It remains a slogan. We must demonstrate that actions speak louder than slogans. Just as we used to do.”