A party with neo-fascist roots has won the most votes in Italy’s national election, setting the stage Monday for talks to create of the country’s first far-right-led government since World War II with Giorgia Meloni at the helm as Italy’s first woman premier.
Italy’s lurch to the far right immediately shifted Europe’s geopolitics, placing the euroskeptic far-right Brothers of Italy in position to lead a founding member of the European Union and its third-largest economy. The shift in Italy follows a similar right-wing victory in Sweden and recent gains by the far-right in France and Spain.
Right-wing leaders across Europe immediately hailed the 45-year-old Meloni’s victory as sending a historic, nationalist message to Brussels, while Italy’s left warned of “dark days” ahead and vowed to keep Italy in the heart of Europe.
Near-final results Monday showed the center-right coalition netting 44% of the parliamentary vote, with Meloni’s Brothers of Italy
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