On the face of it, little has changed in the elegant northern Italian city of Turin since Chiara Appendino, of the Five Star Movement, became mayor in June 2016, ejecting a leftwing administration that had overseen the city’s transformation over the previous two decades.

The wide, tree-lined streets are just as clean, the variety of cultural attractions just as enviable, and the transport network, for the most part, just as efficient. But beneath the calm veneer, its people, usually known for their reserve, are seething.

Chiara Appendino at an award ceremony at the Teatro Carignano in Turin. Photograph: Daniele Badolato/Getty Images

“There is a very strong feeling, even among those who voted for Appendino, that Turin is a city which is no longer being managed,” said Pietro Occhetto, a shop owner in the city centre.

Turin and Rome, led by Appendino’s Five Star Movement counterpart Virginia Raggi, ought to be sources of pride for the party as it leads the polls before a general election on 4 March. Instead, with rancour mounting in each, the Five Star cities are proving to be a scourge.

Rome’s woes, ranging from potholes and uncollected rubbish to an inefficient transport system and rat infestations, blighted the city long before Raggi was elected. But her time in office has been plagued by scandal and criticisms over her failure to solve the problems. She is also facing trial in June for cronyism.

In contrast, her counterpart Appendino inherited a city that was still enjoying the legacy of the 2006 Winter Olympics, an event that marked its reinvention from an industrial hub, best known for being the home of Fiat, into a hip centre of culture and innovation. She got off to a promising start, topping Italy’s list of most loved mayors for 2016.

Quick Guide Parties in the Italian election Show Forza Italia Led by four-time prime minister Silvio Berlusconi (although he himself cannot stand owing to a tax fraud conviction). Wants to introduce a “parallel currency” for domestic use, keeping the euro for international trade. Other policies include: a single “flat rate” income tax for companies and individuals; abolishing housing, inheritance and road tax; doubling the minimum pension; introducing a minimum income of €1,000 a month for all; blocking new immigrant arrivals. Northern League Led by Matteo Salvini. Promises to introduce a parallel currency and a flat tax for all at 15%, as well as allowing earlier retirement, repatriating 100,000 illegal immigrants a year and reopening Italy’s brothels. Brothers of Italy Led by Giorgia Meloni. A southern equivalent of the Northern League with neo-fascist roots; policies broadly similar. Five Star Movement Led by Luigi Di Maio. Proposes a minimum monthly income of €780; raising the budget deficit; repealing 400 “useless” laws, including labour and pension reforms to allow earlier retirement and make firing harder; raising taxes on energy companies; improving relations with Russia.

Democratic party Led by Matteo Renzi. Proposes an increase in minimum wage; negotiating to abolish the EU’s fiscal compact (which imposes stiff budget cuts on high-debt countries); raising the budget deficit to 3% of GDP so as to cut taxes and increase investment. Free and Equal Led by Piero Grasso. New party uniting smaller leftwing groups. Proposes to repeal labour and pension reforms and boost public spending. Photograph: Simona Granati - Corbis/Corbis News

But the honeymoon period met an abrupt end in June, when a woman died and more than 1,500 were injured after Juventus fans watching a screening of the Champions League final stampeded in Piazza San Carlo after mistaking firecrackers for an explosion.

Appendino, an ex-employee of Juventus who travelled to Cardiff for the game against Real Madrid, was criticised for allowing the match to be broadcast in an ill-equipped place. She is among 20 people being investigated for manslaughter and negligence.

Juventus supporters leave Piazza San Carlo after the stampede. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

She is also under fire for failing to deliver on campaign promises, such as moving hundreds of migrants squatting in the former Olympic village and dealing with pressing issues affecting people in deprived areas.

One area where she is delivering – tackling Turin’s air pollution, which is among the worst in Europe – has angered shop owners, who fear that charging drivers to enter the city centre will hurt their businesses. She provoked further anger when she failed to show up to a recent meeting with them, instead sending two colleagues.

“People were furious,” said Massimo Guerrini, president of Circoscrizione Torino Centro-Crocetta, one of the city’s central districts, who hosted the meeting. “I’ve never seen such a big divide between the central administration and citizens.”

The meeting was also intended to address other issues, including cuts in funding for cultural events and the increase in permits being given for new hypermarkets, despite the Five Star Movement long pledging to halt their proliferation.

“There is a lack of experience, but also an arrogance that comes with that,” added Guerrini. They impose their solutions and think they’re right. But they need to listen to the people, and give them hope that they are working for the future.”

Appendino at a Workers’ Day parade in Turin last year. Photograph: NurPhoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Bitterness is even more acute in Vallette, a suburb that suffers from myriad social issues. “Sixty percent of people here voted for Appendino,” said Thomas Lussi, a member of the residents’ committee. “It was a protest vote, because for years we felt abandoned by traditional politics – so much focus was given to developing the centre. But nothing has changed. We feel let down.”

Appendino denied that she was avoiding confrontation, saying she had postponed public meetings until after the elections so as not to compromise the position of the party.

A huge debt left by the previous administration had forced her to make some unpopular decisions and hindered progress on her campaign promises, she added. “We are facing many big problems, but if you don’t have solid funding, you can’t do anything,” she said.

One pledge has been fulfilled: municipal staff have taken pay cuts, reflecting a wider Five Star Movement goal to trim parliamentarians’ wages.

Appendino referred to data showing that manufacturing orders had increased, as had tourism and outside investment. “The city is restarting, and it’s not me saying it – it’s data.”

She conceded, however, that she would not run for election again when her mandate expired in 2021, and neither would her colleague Raggi, who said in December: “Getting to the end of this mandate alive will be a success.”