Posted on 04/14/2008 1:24:05 PM PDT by knighthawk
Silvio Berlusconi has won a crushing victory in the Italian general election to become prime minister for the third time.
The 71-year-old media magnate defeated Walter Veltroni, the 52-year-old leader of the Democratic Party, by a considerable margin and has a large enough majority to rule Italy for a full five-year term.
Mr Veltroni, who was a popular mayor of Rome before entering national politics, conceded defeat five hours after the polls closed, saying that the result was clear.
"I have telephoned Mr Berlusconi to wish him well in the job," he said, adding that he was comforted that Italy had not lost faith in politics, despite being called to its 62nd election in 63 years.
"The country has strongly emphasised its belief in democracy and its institutions. More than 80 per cent of citizens voted."
He also offered his help to Mr Berlusconi in "carrying out reforms" but admitted that Italy's Left wing is destined for a long spell in opposition.
"We cannot know how long it will be," he said.
Projections showed that Mr Berlusconi's coalition won 163 seats in the Senate, compared to 141 seats for Mr Veltroni.
In Italy's lower house, the Chamber of Deputies, the count was 332 seats to 215.
The perma-tanned billionaire said he was "deeply satisfied" with the result.
The Senate was a key battleground for Mr Berlusconi.
Unlike in the UK, both houses of Italy's parliament have an equal amount of executive power.
However, seats in the Senate are distributed on a regional basis. Any party that wins the majority in a region automatically gets 55 per cent of its seats.
Since each party holds a roughly similar number of regions, many commentators doubted whether Mr Berlusconi would be able to win a solid majority.
However, Mr Veltroni warned that Mr Berlusconi's government could be held to ransom by the Northern League, the secessionist party headed by Umberto Bossi, his coalition partner.
"The League is strong. We are a great force!" said Mr Bossi after winning between seven and eight per cent of the vote.
Mr Bossi, who is one of Italy's most controversial and unpredictable politicians, called on Mr Berlusconi to give him a large share of cabinet posts and to carry out the devolution of Italy "immediately".
His party is bent on splitting the industrial north of the country away from the poor regions of the south.
Mr Bossi has wrecked Mr Berlusconi's government before, when he broke off their alliance in 1994.
Although Mr Veltroni lost the election, he was praised for bringing about a revolution in Italian politics.
In the past, the Italian parliament was filled with dozens of squabbling parties.
Romano Prodi's government, for example, was made up of 11 separate parties, ranging from Catholics to communists.
Unsurprisingly, it was unable to find a consensus on any political issue and collapsed under the weight of its contradictions.
But in this election, Mr Veltroni and Mr Berlusconi captured more than 70 per cent of the vote between them, heralding the beginning of a two party system.
Mr Veltroni brought about that change with a New Labour-style purge of Italy's radical parties.
"We have done the right thing for the country," he said.
An alliance of communists and environmentalists, the Arcobaleno party, apparently failed to capture a single seat in either house.
"This is a debacle!" said Nino Frosini, the leader of the Communist Party in Tuscany.
Italy's struggling businesses immediately called on Mr Berlusconi to help them.
"We need to find our confidence again," said Emma Marcegaglia, the head of Confindustria, the pro-business lobby group.
She called for tax reforms and investment in education and "human capital".
Hmmmm. Friends of Bush win France, Germany and now Italy. But alas, Australia is gone and England and Spain. You win some and you lose some. But at least their is no True Marxist-Leftest Trend so there is some hope.
Or more people are noticing that their survival is at stake
Silvio Berlusconi has won a crushing victory in the Italian general election to become prime minister for the third time. The 71-year-old media magnate defeated Walter Veltroni, the 52-year-old leader of the Democratic Party, by a considerable margin and has a large enough majority to rule Italy for a full five-year term... Projections showed that Mr Berlusconi's coalition won 163 seats in the Senate, compared to 141 seats for Mr Veltroni. In Italy's lower house, the Chamber of Deputies, the count was 332 seats to 215... Mr Veltroni warned that Mr Berlusconi's government could be held to ransom by the Northern League, the secessionist party headed by Umberto Bossi, his coalition partner. "The League is strong. We are a great force!" said Mr Bossi after winning between seven and eight per cent of the vote. Mr Bossi, who is one of Italy's most controversial and unpredictable politicians, called on Mr Berlusconi to give him a large share of cabinet posts and to carry out the devolution of Italy "immediately". His party is bent on splitting the industrial north of the country away from the poor regions of the south. Mr Bossi has wrecked Mr Berlusconi's government before, when he broke off their alliance in 1994.
Good to see an old ally back in Italy.
Forza Berlusconi!
Hair transplants, permatan, dental work, chin implant, facelift, eye job, etc.
What is Silvio’s stance on Iraq, WOT, and Muzzies? Anyone?
He’s a staunch supporter of Bush’s WoT, which might have cost him the last election.
Looks like the world is trending conservatism. Except the election in Australia for the past two years, we have conservative governments in:
France
Germany
Canada
South Korea
Japan
now Italy
U.K will soon follow suit
Hopefully McCain will round up the tally.
Australia is not all gone. Even the left-liberals know that they are not beloved by much of the country.
However, the reelection of Berlusconi is a major defeat for the Italian communists and their allies, something that Moscow has probably noticed by now. Helps to secure NATO’s southern front of Greece and Italy, with some French participation. Now if Spain would only get rid of that cowardly red they have, then the northern Mediterranan area would be better protected.
Hey Don Corelone. Can you take care of Sicily? Capish?
"This is a debacle!" said Nino Frosini, the leader of the Communist Party in Tuscany.
This quote is hereby nominated as "Best Quote of the Day"
I think it’s funny. It seems just like a few months ago, Italians couldn’t wait to get rid of him
Don’t forget Canada.
That will twist the panties of the MSM.
The sheeple always fall for the lies of the liberals, leftists, and communists - and then are surprised when they all turn out to be lies.
Wow, you would have thought that with a $1B bankroll he could peel off a few euros for a custom-tailored suit rather than this J.C. Penney's off-the-rack rumple job. Probably his "just a regular guy" campaign suit.
Kidding aside, I'm glad he won. What I want to see within 3 weeks is a vote to send 5,000 Italian troops to Iraq. That would explode the heads of the lesser European "leaders" and the US left wing.
This is great news. Berlusconi is back in power which is a win for world wide conservatism. Now we just need to send the liberals packing and get our mule (John McCain) in line. He is really going to have to stop ceding ground to the liberals. His talk about recession is not helpful. We aren’t even technically in one yet but the more talk of it the more it sends stocks into a tailspin.
Si. Thissa one. Capiche?
Nope. Mediterranean diet; tomatoes, bitter greens and red wine keep cancer away, garlic for an overall tonic and olive oil for the complexion.
My first thought, as well — clearly not an Italian nor an English tailor! You're probably right that he didn't want to appear too elitist. Still, questo abito é una disgrazia!
I, too, am overjoyed that he won. Not only does it give hope for Europe returning to its senses, but it gives support for the idea that a 71-year-old can get elected. On the other hand, Italy has nearly made itself extinct by not having children; here, one of the large blocs of young voters is the children of illegal immigrants.
Mine’s in June.
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