The mayor of the capital announced that he will run for a second term in the 2027 local elections. He then explained that "we not only want to strengthen our majority and the civic vocation of our administration, but also be protagonists of an expansion of the coalition that goes beyond the current borders". The objective, he reiterated, is to have a "broad, inclusive coalition open to multiple political forces".
"Today there is a great capital of trust: Rome can change. And I say it officially, we are here for this: I have decided to run again to continue to change the city. With people at the centre". This was announced by the mayor of the capital Roberto Gualtieri, who opened his electoral campaign in view of the 2027 municipal elections at the public event at the Auditorium della Conciliazione, with the coalition that will support him. "The city has changed me and it has also changed my relationship with people", added the mayor, before launching an appeal for a broad field: "We not only want to strengthen our majority and the civic vocation of our administration, but also be protagonists of an expansion of the coalition that goes beyond the current borders. My goal is that the friends of the M5S and Action present here can be part of this challenge". The objective, Gualtieri reiterated, is to have a "broad, inclusive coalition open to multiple political forces. Let's all move forward together".
Gualtieri opened the electoral campaign with the slogan "Rome, everyone ahead", and for the first time in the capital, at least in the last 10 years, all the forces of the centre-left gathered around the mayor in view of the race for the second term in the Capitol. At the Conciliazione Auditorium the audience brought together representatives of the Democratic Party, of the forces that already support the Capitoline majority and of those with which dialogue is open to broaden the coalition, such as M5S and Action. In the front row, dem secretary Elly Schlein, sitting between Claudio Mancini and Marta Bonafoni. For the Democratic Party present, among others, Cecilia D'Elia, Beatrice Lorenzin, Nicola Zingaretti, Michela Di Biase, Filippo Sensi, Andrea Casu, Matteo Orfini and Emanuela Droghei, together with the Roman and regional secretaries Enzo Foschi and Daniele Leodori, and the founder of Più Uno, Ernesto Maria Ruffini. Representing Italia Viva are Roberto Giachetti, Luciano Nobili and Marianna Madia, as well as the Capitoline councilors Francesca Leoncini, Valerio Casini and Marco Cappa. For the Green Alliance and the Left, the parliamentarian Filiberto Zaratti, while for the Sinistra Civica Ecologista, regional councilor Claudio Marotta and the mini-mayor Amedeo Ciaccheri were also in the room. Also at the meeting were representatives of the 5 Star Movement, with the Roman coordinator Linda Meleo, the deputy Francesco Silvestri and the Capitoline councilors Paolo Ferrara and Daniele Diaco. From Carlo Calenda's party, Action, the deputy Valentina Grippo and the Roman secretary Alessio D'Amato and the Capitoline councilors were in the room.
In addition to the political forces that supported him during the first council meeting, Gualtieri thanked "the other forces that are here and in the opposition that have started a very positive dialogue, naturally starting from the 5 Star Movement and Action". The mayor thanked the two forces for "the way in which they interpreted the opposition" and for having "gradually tried more and more to deal with the issues and started a dialogue, a common path". The mayor aims "for a transformation that must continue and at the same time must be increasingly broad and participatory in the way it addresses citizens and also in the way it tries to involve the best forces of the city".
"The objective, I won't hide it, is this, to win in the first round - said Gualtieri - It would be an extraordinary result and we feel that there is an appreciation of the Romans for the work of this administration which, I remember, for five years has done many things, the likes of which have not been seen for a long time, without ever arguing or dividing themselves".
"We hope to soon have another government that will really help us to have another Housing Plan. We hope that Europe will put the tools for this issue in its toolbox - said Gualtieri during the event - And that it will force governments to take action on housing policies" when there are "cities or regions in difficulty". Then speaking of the climate crisis, the mayor defined the right as "retrograde". And among the answers to be given to Rome on the matter: "One of the most important things to do is depave and put more greenery in our city".
"We want to push more on the green and public city and we will also move forward without hesitation on sustainable mobility by asking the government for resources on public transport, which is shamefully abandoned - continued Gualtieri - Another abomination is the new highway code, which would reduce the safety of pedestrians. An absolute shame that once again takes away power and autonomy from Municipalities and Regions. We will fight it in every way."
"Let's work together immediately on the drafting of the program and on the construction of a large and strong coalition", stated Gualtieri, concluding his speech from the stage of the Auditorium della Conciliazione. If he is reconfirmed, Gualtieri promised that he will continue "to make decisions also on things whose results will be seen after our mandate, because if the construction sites don't start they can't even be completed". The mayor then explained the event's claim, "Rome, everyone ahead": "We called it that because the transformation of the city must continue without delay. But 'all ahead' means that we will have to shift the emphasis from things to people". Hence the appeal "to involve citizens even more in the transformation process. I will do my best, but a mayor cannot do it alone."
"Full support for Mayor Roberto Gualtieri who is standing for re-election to continue the work of great transformation of this city by putting the accessibility of housing, transport and services at the center - commented the secretary of the Democratic Party, Elly Schlein - A great work of modernization and urban regeneration. We support him, of course, also in what he has declared to be an effort to further broaden the majority that supports him. So we will be at his side."
"The welcome was nice. There is only one point: we will discuss it on a programmatic table and only afterwards will we be able to give confirmation", underlined the M5S parliamentarian Francesco Silvestri, leaving the event. "At a national level there is a project, as well as at the opposition in the Lazio Region. So if we come to the table intelligently - he specified - the 5 Star Movement will be able to make a giant contribution not so much to the coalition but to the city". And he explained: "I would say not to reduce the discussions between a Movement that has administered the city for the past 5 years and Mayor Gualtieri simply to the waste-to-energy plant. The city is much more, our neighborhoods need an important contribution, safety, environment, it's not just the waste-to-energy plant. Obviously we will also talk about that but it seems to me to be an irreversible project."
