In the country where the average lifespan of governments is short due to political instability, Meloni, who led the right-wing alliance that won the early general elections on September 25, 2022, broke a record in terms of political stability with the right-wing coalition government he established on October 22, 2022.
While the establishment of 68 governments, including technocrat cabinets, in Italy, which has been governed as a republic since 1946, in 80 years is the most concrete indicator of political instability, the Meloni government has reversed this with its tenure in office.
As of today, the Meloni government has completed its 1413th day in office, becoming the new owner of the title of "longest-living government", which belonged to the second government of Silvio Berlusconi, who remained in office for 1412 days between 2001-2005.
Meloni, who made history as the country's first female prime minister when she formed her government, broke another record by leading the longest-lasting government in office.
Although the Meloni government has been discussed at home and abroad with what it did and did not do in domestic and foreign policy, it has been politically more stable since the autumn of 2022 compared to Europe's other major economies, France and the United Kingdom.
Since the autumn of 2022, when Meloni took office as prime minister in Italy, there have been 5 changes of prime minister in France and 4 in England.
Associate Professor of Political Science at Luiss University in Rome. Dr. In her assessment to the AA correspondent, Vera Capperucci said that the main reason for the longevity of the Meloni government was that it was a "homogeneous coalition".
Capperucci pointed out that it consists of the Brothers of Italy (FdI) party led by Giorgia Meloni, Forza Italia led by Antonio Tajani and the League Party led by Matteo Salvini, as well as the three major parties of the right, and said, "Although there are differences between them, from their political programs to values and political preferences, they are generally quite united. As a result, we are talking about a homogeneous coalition." he said.
Capperucci stated that within the coalition, FdI is in a strong position with its large voter base, while Forza Italia and the League are small partners and that these two parties choose to remain in the coalition despite their differences. "These two parties will either withdraw from the government and bring down the government by revealing that they do not share the line of the strong party, or seek a compromise. In my opinion, what has enabled the Meloni government to continue for so long, despite some differences, is that they have chosen to compromise and stay on a common line." he said.
While this coalition will be established in 2022, especially among the partners; Reminding that the Russia-Ukraine War, relations with the USA, and differences in views towards the European Union (EU) caused discussions that question the future of the government, Capperucci said:
"In particular, issues such as foreign policy preferences and the attitude of the powers that make up the government towards Europe were discussed a lot. I remember that many people said that there might be problems regarding relations with the USA or relations with Russia that could question the continuity of the government. However, the government later showed that it had maintained a compact political line despite the problems. As a result, it has enabled it to complete most of the legislative period so far."
Reminding that there will be elections in the country next year, Capperucci said that it is difficult to predict the elections today.
Capperucci stated that the League, one of the parties in Meloni's right-wing coalition, is currently "weakening", while the votes of National Future (FN), the party of the far-right Roberto Vannacci, which has just emerged and is on the rise in the polls, are increasing, and that the elections are uncertain for the right.
Capperucci, however, stated that the opposition left, known as the "Broad Alliance", is also debating its leadership and political program, so the picture for the elections is clear.
Foreign policy performance of the Meloni government
Ambassador Pasquale Ferrara, who teaches international relations at Luiss University, also evaluated the Meloni government's foreign policy and position in international relations.
Ferrara said that the "sovereignitarian" approach adopted by the Meloni government weakens the EU's decision-making mechanisms, which points to a lack of vision for the future.
Pointing out that Italy played an important role in the Middle East crisis during every government established after the Second World War, Ferrara said, "At this stage, I see that the closeness to Israel is quite evident and there is a difficulty in taking measures that can stop the war crimes in Gaza. For this reason, there is also an unwillingness to recognize the State of Palestine. For example, declaring some ministers in the (Binyamin) Netanyahu government as persona non grata, as some countries do. All of these are possible within the existing diplomatic tools, but the political will to do this is completely lacking." he said.
Pointing out that Prime Minister Meloni is one of the close allies of US President Donald Trump in Europe and that the two leaders are actually close, Ferrara said that the harsh polemics between them because Italy did not open its bases during the Iranian attack on the USA on February 28 were "interesting".
Asked how the harsh polemic between Trump and Meloni will affect the Meloni government in domestic politics, considering next year's elections, Ferrara said, "There are elections next year. Therefore, it may be useful for Prime Minister Meloni to give the message that there is no complete overlap between him and Trump, although their closeness continues in essence." he commented.
Ferrara noted that Italy's initiation of border control to Spain following the irregular migration influxes to Spain's North African city of Sebte (Ceuta) in the summer months was a move by the Meloni government to seize opportunities to advance an agenda focused on domestic policy rather than foreign policy.
Stating that he observed that relations with Türkiye improved in many areas during the Meloni government, Ferrara said, "I believe that this is good for both countries and for the stability in the Mediterranean." he said.
