Italian PM resigns in populist revolt
BERLIN — Europe’s embattled political establishment lost another round Sunday in its effort to thwart the anti-elite movement, as Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi resigned following a voter rejection of his constitutional overhauls. But a centerleft presidential candidate in Austria handily defeated his far-right challenger.
Mr. Renzi’s defeat came hours after voters in Austria, presented with a stark ideological choice for the largely ceremonial position of head of state, chose Alexander Van der Bellen, the former leader of the small Green Party, over Norbert Hofer of the far-right Freedom Party.
It was but a brief reprieve for a European political establishment that has suffered populist jolts all year.
The thorough rejection of Mr. Renzi’s efforts to streamline lawmaking was viewed as a significant boost for the country’s surging anti-establishment forces just weeks after Donald Trump prevailed in the United States. Mr. Renzi’s loss also risked unleashing financial upheaval in Europe’s third-largest economy, as Italy’s weak banks struggle to contain the fallout.
But the surprisingly strong presidential victory in Austria for a center-left elder statesman suggested that there were still some limits to a wave of anti-elite anger that began with British vote to leave the EU and continued with Mr. Trump last month.
A populist takeover of Italy is still seen as an uncertain prospect, since Mr. Renzi’s center-left Democratic Party remains in control of the parliament and national elections do not have to be called until 2018. But much will depend on the makeup of the next government and how the anti-immigrant, euroskeptic parties capitalize on their success. And if early elections do occur next year, 2017 is shaping up to be a seminal year in the history of the EU with founding members Germany, France and potentially Italy all going to the polls with strong Euro-skeptic and populist candidates in the running.
“I have not managed to reach victory,” Mr. Renzi said early today, conceding defeat at the Palazzo Chigi, his official residence. “My government ends today.”
What comes next will depend partially on Italian President Sergio Mattarella, who is charged with picking a new person to try form a government and whether to hold early elections.
Mr. Renzi’s anti-establishment opponents were trying to capitalize on a wave of skepticism about the ability of elites to deal with globalization and the long, painful effects of the economic crisis that started nearly a decade ago.
Italians were technically just giving an up-down nod to the restructuring package. But the referendum to streamline the political system and diminish the role of the Senate long ago turned into a broader vote of confidence in Mr. Renzi, the youthful, Coke-chugging leader who portrayed himself as a lone warrior against Euroskeptic forces.
In Austria, the far-right Freedom Party’s Mr. Hofer conceded defeat on his Facebook page less than 30 minutes after polls closed and following projections showing a surprisingly strong lead for Mr. Van der Bellen. The 72-year-old statesman and former Green Party politician was winning by 53.3 percent to 46.7 percent with nearly 100 percent of the votes counted.
Sunday’s election, in fact, was a rerun of one in May in which Mr. Hofer lost by 31,000 votes, a result he successfully contested.
The race for the ceremonial role as president held high stakes. The position is constitutionally ambiguous, yet Mr. Hofer, who has decried Muslim immigration and free trade, had vowed to beef it up — setting up a clash with the center-left government and the EU.
Mr. Hofer had previously demanded a referendum on EU membership, comparable to the “Brexit” vote in Britain. Shortly after Britain voted to exit the EU, however, he toned down his rhetoric amid fears that the subsequent economic uncertainty in Britain would cause a shift in public opinion that would ripple down to Austria and cost him votes. (In fact, over the weekend, the anti-Brexit Liberal Democrat candidate Sarah Olney unexpectedly gained a U.K. parliamentary seat in a by-election, a result that may further complicate Prime Minister Theresa May’s efforts to begin the process of leaving the European Union early next year.) Ahead of election day, he said he was in favor of a referendum only if the bloc became more centralized.