Rosato: “We at Azione are outside the political blocs; then again, if the PD relies on Gentiloni...”

“Our aim will be to ensure that no party secures 42 per cent and crosses the electoral threshold, so that a pro-European government can be formed in Italy too, leaving populist forces on the sidelines.” Ettore Rosato, MP and deputy secretary of Azione, confirms his party’s strategy: to secure sufficient electoral support to break up the political blocs, giving Italy a different government – brokered by the Quirinale after the vote – comprising pro-European and responsible forces. However, according to the latest polls, this scenario is becoming increasingly unlikely. The latest SWG poll for La7 puts the centre-left at 44.6 per cent and the centre-right (excluding Vannacci) at 44 per cent. In short, both blocs are above the threshold, whilst Azione stands at 3.1 per cent (Futuro Nazionale at 5.6 per cent). Rather than being decisive, the Calendians thus risk becoming irrelevant, don’t they? “The electoral law,” Rosato replies, “has not yet been fully understood by Italians: the sum of the parties, especially on the left, does not work. It will be up to us to explain that every vote cast for Azione makes a possible victory for either coalition less likely. And in any case, that poll also suggests that whether Schlein or Conte leads the centre-left, the result would be the same – which strikes me as very, very strange. I wouldn’t put too much faith in it.”

There is no doubt, however, that the more the election campaign heats up, the more calls for a ‘tactical vote’ will increase.  "The call for a ‘tactical vote’ is present in all election campaigns, including those based on proportional representation – which, after all, is always the vote people cast for themselves," replies the Azione MP. Is there not a risk, however, that at some point, to avoid becoming irrelevant, you will be forced to take sides? It seems that the LibDem secretary, Luigi Marattin, is also on the verge of doing so, as he looks to Meloni: “I don’t think this scenario will come to pass: we have established our political position. It’s clear that if Conte and Schlein decide to withdraw and put Gentiloni forward as prime ministerial candidate, then we’ll consider that scenario, but at the moment it’s not on the cards.”