Face of protest politics leads race to be Rome’s mayor
AS ROMANS head to the polls to elect a new mayor today, a young lawyer is poised to become the city’s first female in the job, promising to clean up the Eternal City’s tarnished reputation.
Capitalising on growing discontent with corruption, Virginia Raggi, the 37year-old candidate of the populist, antiestablishment and Eurosceptic Five Star Movement, is leading opinion polls ahead of today’s first round of voting. Barring a major upset, she seems certain to make the June 19 run-off and is on course to take the high profile role.
“We have the desire to govern, the desire to change this city,” Ms Raggi said earlier this week. “There is no alternative.”
It’s the first mayoral election in Rome since the sordid ‘Mafia Capital’ scandal broke in late 2014, revealing a web of corruption between politicians and mobsters, many of whom are still being tried for rigging contracts and embezzling millions of euros in city funds.
Amid such scandals, the Five Star Movement led by comedian Beppe Grillo has become the latest example of populist parties across Europe surging on the back of public distrust of traditional political elites.
The election is critical for the Five Star Movement and for the government of Matteo Renzi, whose Democratic Party ran the capital until a special administrator was brought in last year after former mayor Ignazio Marino quit over an expenses scandal.
Victory in Rome would help cement Mr Grillo’s party as a political force to be reckoned with, and provide a strong base for it to challenge the Democratic Party in nationwide elections due to be held before 2018.
Voters are asking which candidate has what it takes to restore social services, rid the city of a rising tide of rubbish and graffiti and make the buses and trains run on time. “We have made a personal commitment (to changing the city) and I think there are a lot of our fellow citizens who are also now ready to do the same,” Ms Raggi said.
The mayoral candidate, who is married with a seven-year-old son, has capitalised on widespread frustration over issues ranging from double-parking to chronic absenteeism from government offices.
On Friday VIPs including playwright Dario Fo and actor Claudio Santamaria joined her at a public rally on the final day of campaigning.
Massimo Franco, a leading commentator and author, said he believed Ms Raggi was the leading candidate in the mayoral race but raised questions about her capacity to do the job.
“She is the result of the failure of traditional parties and the expression of a widespread protest and revolt,” Mr Franco said. “I don’t know if she is strong enough. Certainly, her competence and political skill pose a huge question mark. There are neither short cuts nor easy or quick solutions.”
Giovanni Orsina, professor of history at Luiss University in Rome, warned it was too early to predict the final election outcome and stressed that many voters were disillusioned with the choice of candidates. “There is a problem with the sheer mediocrity of the candidates,” he said. “The opinion polls are not to be trusted.”
While Prof Orsina noted Ms Raggi was a brilliant communicator, he too raised doubts about whether she had what it takes to run the city.
“This is a very inefficient administration,” he said. “We keep changing the driver of the bus, but the engine is not working. As a Roman I am ready to pay more taxes, but please give me the services.”
Roberto Giachetti, candidate for Mr Renzi’s centre-Left party, is considered Ms Raggi’s main rival. Among the other candidates, Giorgia Meloni is representing the Right-wing Brothers of Italy party backed by the anti-immigrant Northern League.
Alfio Marchini is the candidate for the centre-Right Forza Italia, founded by Silvio Berlusconi, and candidate Stefano Fassina is for the Italian Left (SI).
‘I don’t know if she is strong enough. There are neither short cuts nor easy or quick solutions’