The ruling South Tyrolean People’s Party (SVP) suffered a significant defeat in the state elections. According to the preliminary final result, the party led by top candidate and governor Arno Kompatscher fell by 7.4 percentage points, from 41.9 percent in the 2018 elections to 34.5 percent – a new low. Kompatscher wants to remain in power despite the heavy defeat.
Kompatscher said Monday morning at party headquarters in Bolzano that he had received about 60,000 preferential votes and that this was a “clear mandate” to lead a government for the next five years. undoubtedly a “painful loss,” governor and SVP chairman Philipp Achammer emphasized.
Still sees the government’s mandate
The goal was to obtain fourteen mandates, but this was not achieved. At the same time, the ‘collective party’ was given a ‘clear government mandate’. Ultimately, they managed to get more votes than the three parties behind them combined.
At the very least, a three-party coalition is needed
The SVP lost two mandates and will now have 13 of the 35 mandates in the South Tyrolean state parliament. It is therefore likely that at least a three-party coalition will flourish. Coalition partner Lega of Italian Transport Minister Matteo Salvini also received a significant share and achieved only 3 percent (2018: 11.1 percent). The League will only be represented in the state parliament with one seat instead of the previous four. Kompatscher therefore needs two more coalition partners to achieve a majority in the state parliament or at least a German-speaking partner. A scenario that the SVP always wanted to avoid as much as possible.
Team K took second place behind the SVP after their surprising success in the last elections. The group finished with 11.1 percent and four mandates – compared to 15.2 percent in 2018. One of the clear winners of these elections is the opposition South Tyrolean Freedom party. The country ranks third with 10.9 percent (2018: 6 percent), meaning it has four mandates instead of the previous two.
Rights are increasing
The Greens also succeeded. They achieved 9 percent (2018: 6.8 percent) and were able to retain their three mandates. The right-wing Fratelli D’Italia (Brothers of Italy) of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, which won 6 percent of the vote in South Tyrol (2018: 1.7 percent) and won two mandates, managed to make significant gains.
The “JWA” list of corona measures critic and former rifle commander Jürgen Wirth Anderlan achieved considerable success. It immediately received 5.9 percent (two mandates). However, the performance of the South Tyrolean Freedom Party was disappointing with 4.9 percent. In 2018 they amounted to 6.2 percent. However, the party remains represented with two seats in the state parliament.
Compatscher opponent gets a seat
The social-democratic Partito Democratico obtained 3.5 percent. 0.3 percentage points less than in 2018, but she still has a mandate guarantee. The Five Star Movement will no longer be represented in the state parliament, the Italian-speaking party lost its seat. The performance on the list ‘For South Tyrol with Widmann’ by former SVP state councilor Thomas Widmann was sobering: 3.4 percent and so with his list the former party veteran and Kompatscher opponent received a seat in the state parliament.
The turnout this time was 71.5 percent, lower than in the 2018 state elections. At that time, 73.9 percent of eligible voters went to the polls.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
