Populist Five Star sees Sicily as stepping stone to power

SICILIANS went to the polls yesterday in a closely watched regional election that is seen as a test of Italy’s political mood ahead of general elections in the spring.

More than 4.6 million citizens are eligible to cast ballots on the Mediterranean island, which has been afflicted by a decade of recession, public sector mismanagement, corruption and organised crime.

As one of the poorest regions in Europe, Sicily has proven fertile ground for the anti-establishment Five Star Movement (M5S), which latest polls show running neck-and-neck with the centre-right coalition, with the fractured, ruling centre-left Democratic Party lagging far behind.

“They have governed Sicily for 20 years and they reduced it to rubble,” said Giancarlo Cancelleri, 42, M5S’S candidate for governor, in his last campaign message to voters. “Now the choice is clear: us or them, the future versus the past, hope versus failure, citizens versus parties.”

A win by Mr Cancelleri would give Beppe Grillo’s M5S control over its first region and considerable momentum going into Italy’s general election, expected to be held between March and May next year.

More jobs and a tougher stance on immigration are among the promises made by Silvio Berlusconi, the Forza Italia leader and former prime minister, who has re-emerged on to the political stage.

“Whoever votes for Five Star is not thinking,” Mr Berlusconi told supporters at one of the rallies for the centreright coalition. “I can’t imagine you would put Sicily in their hands.”