Biffoni: "My obsession is the theme of housing"

"From tomorrow we start again. I have read the appeal by Confindustria Toscana on the textile issue, it is one of the main issues to be taken up again. There is the issue of safety, of work, the issue of understanding where my municipal machine is with the issue of budgets and investments. The other big issue, my obsession, is the issue of housing: we want to immediately focus attention on this issue," said Matteo Biffoni, commenting on the outcome of the municipal elections.

"I want to send a thank you to the commissioner, I had started out prejudiced and skeptical and instead I found a person who took care of this city," he added. "When the handover takes place, it will be my care to start picking up the threads of the city's priorities."

The candidates

The race in Prato was an articulated challenge but with a fairly clear balance: on one side the two main poles, center-left and center-right, on the other a constellation of alternative candidacies that tried to capture protest or identity votes.

At the center of the scene was Matteo Biffoni, already mayor of the city for two terms from 2014 to 2024, who returned to run at the head of a broad center-left coalition with Pd, M5s, Avs, Azione and civic lists. Directly challenging him was Gianluca Banchelli, an FdI exponent, chosen as the unitary candidate of the center-right. His coalition included the main parties of the area - FdI, Lega Udc and FI -, with the aim of conquering a historically left-leaning municipality.

Within the framework of candidacies was also that of Jonathan Targetti, of the L'Alternativa c'è movement, who positioned himself in an area of radical criticism of traditional parties.

On the civic front, Claudio Belgiorno, former FdI who left the party after being investigated for complicity in the crime of revenge porn and defamation against his former colleague in the Municipality Tommaso Cocci, a matter for which he has always declared himself innocent, presented himself with his own list.

Further to the left than the coalition led by Biffoni ran Enrico Zanieri, candidate of Unità Popolare, which brought together forces such as Rifondazione Comunista, Partito Comunista Italiano and Potere al Popolo.

Also running was former Lega member Emilio Paradiso with the list Alleati per Prato.

Among the names initially in the running was Mario Adinolfi, leader of the Popolo della famiglia, whose list was not admitted due to non-compliance with signatures.