Alessandra Todde of the Five-Star Movement claimed victory in the regional elections in Sardinia. The result marks a significant setback for the reigning right-wing coalition led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Todde triumphed over Paolo Truzzu of Fratelli d’Italia in a close election, snaring 45.4 percent of the votes against Truzzu’s 45 percent. Todde will become the first female leader of Sardinia.
The election day was tense, with only a gap of around 3,000 votes between Todde and Truzzu. Alongside casting their ballot for the presidency, citizens were asked to vote for a party. Votes for parties that support Truzzu outnumbered those for Todde-supporters. Nonetheless, the Democratic Party emerged at the forefront with 13.8 percent of the vote, slightly besting Fratelli d’Italia’s 13.6 percent. This result sparked momentum for a potential alliance between the Five-Star Movement and the Democratic Party ahead of June’s European elections.
Tensions ran high among Meloni‘s center-right coalition, which has been grappling with challenges, including its stance on the European stage. Meloni had earlier imposed Paolo Truzzu as the coalition’s candidate, which sparked allegations from Lega of internally obstructing their candidate.