Grillo Wins Parma, Orlando Takes Palermo

Doria secures Genoa as polls close. Centre-left holds onto L’Aquila. People of Freedom loses Monza, Como and Asti

MILAN – The big winners are Beppe Grillo and his Five Star Movement (FSM), Leoluca Orlando and Italy of Values (IDV). For many observers, the message from this round of elections is the triumph of “anti-politics”, even though the newly elected mayors themselves reject the tag and see themselves as a genuine response to voters’ rejection of the traditional party system. Federico Pizzarotti will be the new mayor of Parma. The FSM candidate pulled in 60.22% of the vote against 40.1% for the Centre-left’s Vincenzo Bernazzoli. In Palermo, Leoluca Orlando returns to Palazzo delle Aquile for the fourth time with a crushing 72.43% vote that left the Centre-left’s official candidate, Fabrizio Ferrandelli, on just 27.57%. Meanwhile in Genoa, the match was equally one-sided. The Centre-left’s Marco Doria, who saw off the official Democratic Party (PD) candidate Marta Vincenzi in February’s primaries, had a clear win over the Third Pole’s Enrico Mussi by 59.71% to 40.28%.

FOCUS ON PARMA – The vote in Parma is the most significant result from this round. A good performance by Federico Pizzarotti was on the cards but the contest was expected to go down to the wire. In the event, the FSM candidate left his adversary trailing in his wake. One of the most widely subscribed theories, shared by PD deputy secretary Enrico Letta, is that Mr Pizzarotti’s success was driven by supporters of the Centre-right, who voted for him in order to spike the Centre-left’s guns. In the first round, the PD and its allies were 20 points ahead but the situation was overturned in a fortnight, a sign that the FSM’s candidate attracted many of the first-round votes that went to other candidates, including the PDL. A cock-a-hoop Beppe Grillo trumpeted his satisfaction to supporters on Skype and YouTube: “First Stalingrad, then we take Berlin!” In other words, next stop Rome.

MAYOR – Federico Pizzarotti is the second FSM mayor after the win at Sarego, in the province of Vicenza, two weeks ago, and is the first in a provincial capital. Elsewhere in deepest northern Italy, two more Grillo-supporting mayors were elected at Mira, in the province of Venice, and Comacchio, in Ferrara. Alvise Maniero won 52.48% of the Mira poll to outstrip the Centre-left’s Michele Carpinetti, who gained 47.51%, and in Comacchio Marco Fabbri, aka “Cichino”, picked up 69.24% to see off the Centre-left’s Alessandro Pierotti, on 30.75%. A fifth win is unlikely to emerge, at least for this election. Matteo Afker, who went into the second round at Garbagnate Milanese against the Centre-left’s Pier Mauro Pioli, could manage no more than 48.26%. Nevertheless, it was a red-letter day for Beppe Grillo and the FSM.

MORE CRUCIAL CLASHES – The media spotlight was also on Monza, where the Northern League’s split with the PDL caused the outgoing League mayor’s exclusion in the first round. Monza has always been viewed as a stronghold of the League and Centre-right and it was no coincidence that the town hosted the “ministries of the North” for a few months. The Centre-left’s Roberto Scanagatti triumphed with 63.4% against the 36.6% cobbled together by Andrea Mandelli for the Centre-right. L’Aquila also went to the polls. Massimo Cialente, the Centre-left’s outgoing mayor, and one of the emblematic politicians of the earthquake-hit town, eased back in with 58.19% against the 40.8% of his opponent, centrist Giorgio De Matteis.

PDL’S COLLAPSE – The second round underlined the collapse of the PDL as more Centre-right strongholds fell in the wake of the party’s elimination from all the most important contests on 6 and 7 May. In Como, the Centre-left’s Mario Lucini won a clear victory with about 75% of the vote against the 25% garnered by the Centre-right’s Laura Bordoli. Como had always returned a Centre-right mayor since direct elections were introduced. The Centre-right also has a winning track record at Lucca but this time its candidate Pietro Fazzi could do no better than 30.27% against the 69.72% for the Centre-left’s Alessandro Tambellini. Asti, too, changed sides with Fabrizio Vignolo’s progressive coalition picking up 56.6% to oust the Centre-right administration and its candidate Giorgio Galvano, who were stranded on 43.39%. Alessandria, Rieti, Isernia and Brindisi also turned their backs on the Centre-right in favour of the Centre-left. The only town to go against the trend was Frosinone. Elsewhere in provincial capitals, incumbent administrations were confirmed.

TURNOUT – Another significant figure, albeit one that is politically negative and should be interpreted as a sign of voter disaffection, is the turnout, which fell to 51.38% in comparison with the first round’s 65.4%. Voters deserted the polls en masse in some cities, such as Palermo where only 39.76% expressed a preference, or Genoa, where just 39.08% turned out.

English translation by Giles Watson

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