Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi offered to resign Thursday after losing the support of one of Italy’s largest political parties.
The prime minister said he will tender his resignation to Italian President Sergio Mattarella because he did not want to run a government that did not have the support of Italy’s Five Star party, which became the country’s biggest party in Parliament in 2018 before breaking apart earlier this year.
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“I want to announce that this evening I will present my resignation to the President of the Republic,” Draghi said in a statement shared with CNN. “Today’s votes in Parliament are very significant from a political point of view. The majority of national unity that has supported this government since its creation is no longer there.”
The Five Star party had warned that its senators would not participate in a confidence vote Thursday because of a disagreement on Draghi’s cost-of-living legislation that was passed by Parliament. The party said it was open to dialogue with Draghi, but Draghi said he would not accept any ultimatums. The legislation was intended to help offset rising energy prices for homes and businesses, but the party argued that the offer did not go far enough.
“I have a strong fear that September will be a time when many families will face the terrible choice of paying their electricity bill or buying food,” Giuseppe Conte, a former prime minister and the party’s leader, told France 24. “We are absolutely willing to dialogue, to make our constructive contribution to the government, to Draghi, [but] we are not willing to write a blank cheque.”
Despite the party’s boycott, Draghi survived the confidence vote by a considerable margin.
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Draghi, who was previously the leader of the European Central Bank from 2011-19, was selected to lead the country’s government in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Senators from some of Italy’s smaller parties have called for an early election after Draghi resigns despite the next election being scheduled for the spring of 2023. Draghi met on Thursday night with Mattarella, who rejected the resignation and encouraged Draghi to reconsider.
