Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi will resign today after a party in his coalition government did not participate in a confidence vote, plunging the country into political crisis.
It will be up to President Sergio Mattarella to accept or reject Draghi’s resignation, but if the government crisis can’t be resolved quickly, Mattarella could pull the plug on Parliament – setting the stage for an election as early as September.
‘I will tender my resignation to the president of the republic this evening,’ Draghi told the cabinet, according to a statement released by his office. ‘The national unity coalition that backed this government no longer exists.’
Draghi won the confidence vote in the Senate but his pandemic unity government collapsed after the populist 5-Star Movement boycotted the vote.
The vote was 172-39 on a relief bill to help Italians facing soaring energy costs, but 5-Stars senators were absent after confirming they wouldn’t participate.
Draghi later met with Mattarella to…
