In a speech on Wednesday, Draghi indicated he was willing to remain prime minister if his fractious coalition partners could guarantee him “sincere and concrete support” to continue. But although he won a vote of confidence in parliament on Wednesday evening, it was without the support of key parties in the power-sharing administration. As things stand, it looks like there is nowhere for Draghi to go but to tender his resignation. He is expected to address Italy’s lower house on Thursday before going to see Italy’s president, Sergio Mattarella. Draghi will formally announce his decision to step down on Thursday morning, according to Italian news agency Ansa. If he resigns, it would lead to early elections, plunging the country into months of unrest. Italy’s right-wing parties are expected to win this contest, which will likely be held in the fall. The departure of the 74-year-old former European Central Bank president would also deprive the EU of one of its most experienced leaders at a critical time, with inflation soaring and war raging on its doorstep. Wednesday’s vote marked the culmination of a crisis that had been building for months as tensions rose between Italy’s increasingly divisive coalition partners ahead of elections scheduled for next year.

ITALY NATIONAL PARLIAMENT ELECTION POLL OF PURPOSES

For more poll data from across Europe, visit the POLITICO Poll of Polls. After a meeting between Silvio Berlusconi, leader of the centre-right Forza Italia, and Matteo Salvini, leader of the hard-right League, at Berlusconi’s villa in Rome on Wednesday, the two right-wing parties set their own conditions for support. Dragi. They agreed to back him only if the new government excluded the 5-Star Movement – ​​something Draghi had previously said he would not accept. They also called for the removal of Health Minister Roberto Speranza and Interior Minister Luciana Lamorgese, whom the League sees as weak in handling the pandemic and immigration. They said they would not take part in the confidence vote on the Draghi proposal. These demands would be very difficult for Draghi to satisfy. He said he would not lead a government that excluded 5 Stars. Without them, the balance in the coalition would shift to the right, and Draghi sees his mandate as the head of a government of national unity.
Draghi offered to step down last week after the 5-Star Movement boycotted a crucial confidence vote. But after President Sergio Mattarella rejected his resignation, Draghi agreed to make a last-ditch effort to save the coalition. He said in his speech to the Senate on Wednesday that he would be willing to stay on as Italian prime minister, but only if there was support for his program of EU-mandated reforms and policies from his coalition partners. He criticized the parties, which he said had shown “increasing discord and division” in recent months, and cited their opposition to various proposed laws as evidence that the ruling majority “has landed on the country’s modernization programme”. The two right-wing parties in his coalition appeared surprised and irritated by the tone and content of Draghi’s speech. Massimo Bitonci, a League lawmaker, said his party was “shocked” by Draghi’s comments. He argued that Draghi had failed to mention League-backed policies such as the flat tax rate in his proposed agenda.