A government figure at the court of “Scateno”

In the run-up to the general election, even an extra percentage point – if firmly rooted in one’s local area – can make all the difference. And so, from 27 to 29 October, at the Hotel Massimo D’Azeglio to pay tribute to Cateno De Luca, known as ‘Scateno’, several members of the government will attend the ‘Sud chiama Nord’ convention, which will be further enhanced by the collaboration with the Mayors of Italy movement.

Proceedings will begin on Tuesday with Senate President Ignazio La Russa, followed by Ministers Matteo Piantedosi and Gilberto Pichetto Frattin. The following day will see the under-secretaries and deputy ministers take the floor (Francesco Paolo Sisto, Maria Teresa Bellucci, Lucia Borgonzoni, Alessandro Morelli), whilst Sunday’s closing session will be led by heavyweight Guido Crosetto. There will therefore be bipartisan participation, involving Fratelli d’Italia, Forza Italia and the Lega, with a large part of the government crammed into the chamber to seal the agreement with De Luca.

Moreover, the ‘Sud chiama Nord-FdI’ initiative has already begun in the Chamber of Deputies, where – to officially launch the Sicilian branch of the movement – MPs Manlio Messina and Luca Sbardella came to the rescue, straight from the Fratelli d’Italia benches, ready to lend their support to the former mayor’s staunch loyalist, Francesco Gallo.

Electoral maths is currently one of the centre-right’s priorities: with a majority hanging by a thread, the network of local councillors that De Luca brings to the table guarantees that one per cent of the civic vote which would be useful to anyone in Rome. It is therefore best to hold on tight to Scateno to have an extra ‘crutch’.