Election officials count the votes after the regional elections in Sardinia (European)

The results of the regional elections in the Italian region of Sardinia showed the first majority defeat for Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni since she took power, in front of the center-left opposition.

The representative of the "5 Star Movement", Alessandra Todi, allied with the center-left Democratic Party, defeated the mayor of Cagliari, Paolo Trozzo, a member of the far-right Fratelli d'Italia party, which represented the Meloni government coalition, according to the results published on Tuesday.

Although Todi clinched her victory by a narrow margin - 45.4% of the vote compared to 45% for Truzo - this represents Meloni's first electoral defeat since she took office in October 2022.

While Terzo admitted his defeat, he told reporters, "Actually, Meloni is not responsible. These elections were not national."

Meloni said in her tweet today, “Defeats are often disappointing, but they are also an opportunity to reflect and improve. We will also draw lessons from this.”

Todi - who became the first female president of the island of Sardinia, located in southern Italy, served as Undersecretary of State for Economy in Conte's government and then in Mario Draghi's government as Deputy Minister.

Her election for a 5-year term comes about 3 months before the European elections, which will serve as a new test for Meloni and the parties in her coalition, the anti-immigration League party led by Matteo Salvini and Forza Italia (right).

Sardinia, with a population of 1.8 million, is one of the five Italian regions that enjoy a “special status” that guarantees it strong independence at the legislative, financial and administrative levels.

This vote represents an important step for the opposition, which was divided until now, but united behind one female candidate.

“Today we proved that the right can be defeated,” Democratic Party leader Ellie Schlein said.

As for former Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, head of the 5-Star Movement, he said, “The people of Sardinia closed the door to Meloni and her allies, and opened it to rotation.”

Nationally, Meloni's party has topped opinion polls since her election.

According to the latest opinion polls conducted by the "Youtrend" website, the Fratelli d'Italia party received 28% of voting intentions, far ahead of the Democratic Party with 19.6% and the 5 Star Movement with 16.2%.

Experts warn against overestimating a regional vote that was heavily influenced by local factors, whether it is the declining health system or the corruption investigation against the outgoing right-wing president.

Daniele Albertazzi, a professor of politics and an expert on populism at Britain's University of Surrey, said, "The Italian Prime Minister is still on the right track to achieve good results in the European elections scheduled for next June."

He added, "But this setback may allow its allies to prove themselves, especially in choosing candidates for the regional elections, including the upcoming elections on March 10 in Abruzzo," ruling out a crisis with Meloni's allies, because "they have no other choice." But they can hope for more influence after this defeat.

Source: Agencies