The Italian presidency announced that Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte submitted his resignation to President Sergio Mattarella in an attempt to form a new government with a stronger majority.
The Italian presidency stated in a communiqué that Mattarella accepted the resignation and retains the right to decide "what to do next," urging the government to continue managing day-to-day affairs until a new government is formed. The presidency added that Mattarella will begin a new round of consultations with party leaders to explore the possibilities of moving forward to form a new government, with discussions expected to continue until Thursday.
It is noteworthy that Conte’s resignation was anticipated, especially as it came after the escalation of the crisis in Italy over the past weeks, following two votes of no confidence in parliament and the loss of the ruling majority in the Senate. The political crisis in Italy began when former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi (2014-2016) withdrew his small party, "Italia Viva," from the ruling coalition on January 13, after criticizing the handling of the health crisis and Conte’s economic spending plans.
"Italia Viva" has been part of the government since the summer of 2019, alongside the Democratic Party (center-left) and the Five Star Movement (populist), with support from smaller parties in parliament. After "Italia Viva" withdrew from the ruling coalition, Conte attempted to conduct behind-the-scenes negotiations hoping to attract independent or dissenting parliamentarians to remain in power through a cabinet reshuffle. However, he was unsuccessful in his efforts and ultimately had to opt to resign, hoping the president would entrust him again to form the government.
Conte (65 years old) hopes to receive a mandate from President Mattarella, which would be the third since 2018, in an attempt to form a new government, according to Italian media. This comes amid a wave of anger over his government's management of the COVID-19 crisis. The loss of the majority occurred after his predecessor, Matteo Renzi, decided to withdraw the small "Italia Viva" party from the ruling coalition led by Conte due to frustrations with the government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and the accompanying economic recession. Analysts indicated that President Sergio Mattarella might decide to reappoint Conte as Prime Minister again after consultations with political leaders.
