The one in Calabria could be the first important appointment to test the party’s strength at the polls (and not just in the polls). Futuro Nazionale of Roberto Vannacci could run independently to win the parliamentary seat left vacant by the Forza Italia member Francesco Cannizzaro, elected mayor of Reggio Calabria in June. Voting will take place on September 27 and 28 (the constituency includes Reggio and municipalities up to Villa San Giovanni), the deadline for candidacies and for Futuro Nazionale is August 24. And the Calabrian by-elections are shaping up as a significant electoral test.
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The push to present a candidate
So far, apart from the case of Vigevano – where the futurists supported Furio Suvilla’s list which, with 14% of the votes, stopped the League excluding it from the runoff – the ‘vannaccians’ have never had their own candidate. So far, the party has been driven exclusively by its members (140 thousand, as of yesterday) and the polls. The latest ones rate it around 7%. Trying and achieving a good result would still provide visibility. However, within the party, there are also those who preach caution, fearing that exposing themselves now would be a useless gamble. Better to rely only on voting intentions – suggest the more cautious – postponing the real test to the general elections. Especially since running and causing the center-right candidate to lose risks having a boomerang effect.
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Hypotheses in the field
Moving on to names, in Calabria many look to Paolo Ferrara as the main likely candidate for the race. President of UniReggio, a training body and university hub in Reggio Calabria, he does not hide his sympathy and comments on the “Vannacci phenomenon” on social media and posts videos with Domenico Furgiuele, MP and Calabrian head of FnV. Meanwhile, a party meeting is scheduled for Thursday. The occasion is the assembly in Santa Trada, a coastal locality of Villa San Giovanni with Furgiuele and Edoardo Ziello, national head of FnV’s organization. Vannacci will not be there; when asked, he confirmed that he is considering whether to run and that he will announce it in due time. Just as he did days ago by launching the candidacy of his parachutist colleague Carmelo Burgio for mayor of Milan.
Other leading names
A possible FnV run would threaten FI’s race, which is considered likely to win. Not only because the seat to be replaced belongs to Cannizzaro, but also due to the strong rooting of the Berlusconians in the land that was once of Jole Santelli and is now in the hands of Roberto Occhiuto, Tajani’s number two in the party, although often described as his competitor. The Azzurri have not yet officially announced the name, but Fabio Roscioli is circulating insistently. National treasurer of FI and lawyer for Fininvest, he enjoys the trust of the Berlusconi family. On the opposite front, the “broad field” aims to field a shared candidate. Soon, probably after mid-August, the national table will meet with leaders and local representatives who should make a decision. It is unlikely they will focus on Carmine Fotia, born in Reggio and a journalist who at the end of July expressed his availability saying he has the support of part of the left.
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