Regional elections in Tuscany: Five Star Movement online voting supports alliance with Democratic Party (PD): yes to support Giani
The consultations
The "broad field" in Tuscany will take place. A small group of Five Star Movement members have decided to do so, called to vote online on the Skyvote platform on the question posed by leader Giuseppe Conte regarding the "conditions for participating" in the Democratic Party -led coalition that will support outgoing president Eugenio Giani in the upcoming regional elections on October 12-13.
Around 2,500 people voted in the online poll, and just over 1,500 voted "yes" to Giani, who is seeking a repeat of his term, supported by the Democratic Party, the Green-Left Alliance, +Europa, and Italia Viva.
Conte had decided to resort to online voting among members following the split that emerged within the "grassroots" , which historically in Tuscany opposes the "power system" of the left in the stronghold of the PD today, and of the PCI in the past.
The threat of a split from some "local chapters" of the Five Star Movement, particularly in Livorno, Empoli, and Carrara —the Five Star communities most opposed to a regional agreement with the Democrats—had pushed Conte to decide to let members decide on the agreement. The former prime minister himself had made a clear judgment on the negotiations with the Democratic Party, supporting Giani, calling it " a truly significant sacrifice ," but one that should be achieved in light of Democratic Party secretary Elly Schlein 's decision to leave Campania to the Five Star Movement, where former Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Roberto Fico will be running despite the overwhelming presence of outgoing governor Vincenzo De Luca .
The Tuscan members' "yes" vote thus paves the way for agreements and a shared path between the Democratic Party and the Five Star Movement ahead of the fall regional elections in Tuscany, Campania, Veneto, Marche, Puglia, and Calabria . Conte also confirmed this: "The vote of our members now gives us a clear mandate to engage with the presidential candidate to rigorously verify that the conditions deemed essential by the local community for the signing of a programmatic agreement are respected and clearly stated."
The agreement was also welcomed with "satisfaction" by Eugenio Giani, who described it as "an important result that places our region at the forefront of the new political season and strengthens the dialogue between political and civic forces committed to a more just, modern, green, and supportive Tuscany."
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