“Today our government becomes the longest-serving in the history of the Italian Republic,” G. Meloni wrote on the social network X.
“I accept this with gratitude and a strong sense of responsibility. Because stability is not a record to boast about, but a condition that allows the nation to plan, decide, fulfill its commitments, and be respected,” she wrote.
G. Meloni became the first woman to hold the office of Prime Minister of Italy on October 22, 2022, and has led the same administration for 1,413 days – one day longer than the late billionaire media magnate Silvio Berlusconi managed – despite crises in other parties of her ruling coalition.
In Italy, 68 governments have changed in 80 years. Previous governments were overthrown by crises and defections to other parties, which G. Meloni has so far managed to avoid.
Dozens of buses are bringing supporters to the capital of the southern Apulia region, where G. Meloni’s far-right party “Brothers of Italy” (Fratelli d’Italia, Fdl) is holding a party in a port area that can accommodate up to 10,000 people, according to organizers.
G. Meloni will address the crowds early in the evening, and her deputy prime ministers Matteo Salvini and Antonio Tajani are expected to appear via video link at the event, which is essentially an election rally ahead of the 2027 vote.
With the official slogan “Il Governo piu stabile, l’Italia piu forte” (“The most stable government, the strongest Italy”), the celebration will begin with DJ performances.
Speeches will focus on the government’s achievements in just under four years of governance – from over a million additional workers to 21 billion euros in reduced personal income taxes.
Italy’s fiscal stability, burdened by debt, has greatly improved, although critics say that stability has not translated into growth.
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“Have wages increased? No. Gasoline is more expensive, job insecurity has risen, people retire less often, and the healthcare system is functioning worse,” said CGIL union leader Maurizio Landini before the party.
Security, migration
G. Meloni claims that Rome’s influence on the world stage has grown, although an early friendship with US President Donald Trump impressively collapsed after she criticized the Republican for attacking the Pope.
Her coalition, which includes the far-right, anti-immigrant “League” (Lega) and the right-wing party “Forward, Italy” (Forza Italia), has passed about 300 laws and decrees, most aimed at combating what the government calls security threats, ranging from petty criminals to ravers and climate protesters.
The party “Brothers of Italy,” with neo-fascist roots, won the 2022 elections promising to fight illegal migration and boasts that due to its policies, incoming migrants have decreased by 80 percent.
However, these achievements will not be enough.
G. Meloni “will also have to say how she intends to use these last months before the vote; this is a very interesting question,” said La Stampa columnist Flavia Perina at a press conference in Rome on Thursday.
While food trucks serve the traditional Bari dish “Spaghetti all’Assassina” – pasta with a spicy, smoky sauce – to party participants, G. Meloni’s critics will gather in the historic city center for an anti-government demonstration.
Its organizers accuse the government of creating a “war and arms economy” and a “police state” and of fostering a climate of hatred towards migrants.
Such a climate is favorable to the rise of a rival not invited to the celebrations – former general Roberto Vannacci, whose party “National Future” (Futuro Nazionale, FN) is even more far-right than G. Meloni’s party and has experienced an impressive rise, allowing it to surpass both the League and Forward, Italy in polls.
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