Europe's Biggest Election Winner Italy's Meloni... Far-Right and Centrist Both Send 'Love Calls'

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is being recognized as the biggest winner in the European Parliament (EU) elections.

According to ANSA news agency and the daily newspaper Corriere della Sera on the 10th, with the vote count nearly complete, the hard-right ruling party led by Prime Minister Meloni, Brothers of Italy (FdI), has secured 28.8% of the vote.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni
Photo by AP Yonhap News

This marks an increase of about 3 percentage points from FdI's 26.0% vote share in the September 2022 general election. FdI belongs to the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR), a hard-right political group within the EU.

The ruling coalition's vote share also rose from below 43% two years ago to over 47%. Senator Licia Ronzulli of Forza Italia (FI), a coalition partner, commented on the election results, saying, "The current government will definitely become stronger."

Prime Minister Meloni's victory is notable for not being limited to domestic politics. Jacob Kirkegaard, a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund (GMF), a US think tank, analyzed, "Meloni firmly controls domestic affairs and seeks to exert additional influence at the EU level."

In particular, Meloni's victory in this election is contrasted with the defeats of French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. The election is seen as a mid-term assessment of the established political powers in each country.

Meloni is currently receiving 'love calls' from both Ursula von der Leyen, the center-right EU Commission President seeking re-election, and Marine Le Pen, the far-right French leader. Von der Leyen's re-election prospects have become uncertain due to the rise of far-right parties, while Le Pen needs to ally with Meloni to mainstream the French National Rally (RN).

Meloni has not yet responded to their proposals. Major foreign media outlets predict that Meloni's response will have a decisive impact on Europe's future.

The Economist referred to Meloni, von der Leyen, and Le Pen as "the three women who will shape Europe," reporting that their alliances and rivalries could determine Europe's future.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.