Posted on 04/10/2006 3:05:54 PM PDT by John Geyer
Vote projections in Italy indicate the Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi may defy early predictions and cling to power in both houses of Parliament.
Early TV exit polls suggested the centre-left opposition would win the Upper House or Senate.
Left wing supporters were jubilant and Opposition Leader Romano Prodi was said to be preparing for a victory speech.
But then early counting suggested Mr Berlusconi's right-wing coalition would hold on to the Lower House.
TV stations are now predicting Italy's longest serving post-war government could actually win, defying opinion polls during the campaign.
The results may be complicated by a small number of seats reserved for representatives of 3 million Italians living abroad.
They have been able to vote in a general election for the first time.
Under the terms of a highly controversial reform of the electoral system introduced by Mr Berlusconi last year, the winner in the 630-seat lower house is automatically assigned 340 seats to enable it to control the chamber.
Italy's two houses of Parliament duplicate each other's functions and a government needs the support of both to take office and then to pass laws.
The Interior Ministry says turnout at the election is a high 83.6 per cent against 81.4 per cent in 2001.
Mr Berlusconi has argued that a turnout above 82 per cent would help his coalition.
Mr Berlusconi - Italy's richest man and the creator of the country's biggest media empire - dominated the often ill-tempered campaign with a serious of fierce outbursts against his opponents.
But he upstaged Mr Prodi in the final week of electioneering with a last-minute promise to abolish unpopular property taxes.
Mr Prodi's centre-left alliance, which stretches from Roman Catholic centrists to communists, has led in opinion polls for the past two years, benefiting from widespread voter discontent over the stagnant economy and rising cost of living.
They dismissed Mr Berlusconi's tax cut pledge and said Italy needed a new government to sort out the country's economic woes.
The Italian economy has grown on average just 0.6 percent a year since Mr Berlusconi took office in 2001, its debt has risen to 106.4 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) and its trade deficit hit a record high in 2005.
The next government is not expected to take office for at least a month, with Parliament first having to nominate a successor to President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, whose mandate expires in May.
The president must name the new prime minister and Mr Ciampi says he wants to leave the task to his successor.
Forza Italia!!
That said, *whew!*
How much do you want to bet that the DU'ers are asking whether or not Italy uses Dieblod machines?
Ha ha ha...
Now let me see. That's Howard, Bush, Blair and possibly Burlesconi in the win column and Azner and Schroeder in the loss column.
Aside from the Azner anomoly, I'm thinking that supporting the Iraq war may improve your political fortunes.
Sound familiar.
We had best not allow that to happen here again.
I have always been polled on every election, federal, state and local. I have always participated.
I will never answer another poll question. They can all go to hell.
They were believing the lying Euro MSM.
I suspected as much.
Yes!!!
This is indeed "Bona Fortuna."
But, wait a minute...the exit polls said Prodi was winning, just like Kerry.
It's a conspiracy, I tell ya! Another stolen election, just like Gore, just like Kerry.
Oh, when will it ever end?
Whoa!!!! Whew!!!! ;-)
Does that bring back happy memories :-)
Great news if sanity really has prevailed!!
btw, what's the story with media "exit polls" always favoring the left (here it was Gore then Kerry, and in Italy it was the commie weasel Prodi)??????? When will people finally take notice of the fact that all of these turnout suppressing early exit polls seem to favor candidates of the left? Must be a mere coincidence, for no honest reporters or editors would be party to such a scam..... /sarcasm
I guess they hope it will influence the conservative voters to stay home. In 2004, it had the effect of bringing them out!
Don't forget Paul Martin.
Yep. This is good. I was really bummed earlier (you think we'd know by now not to trust the MSM). Italy is a valuable ally in the WOT and the election of the left there would not be a good thing...
Don't forget about Martin in Canada in the loss column.
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