Why is Italy swerving far right? Many feel they have no choice.
As young female protesters wrapped in rainbow flags demonstrate at a Brothers of Italy campaign rally in Milan, party leader Giorgia Meloni pokes fun at them from the stage.
“They finished their holidays, got off dad’s yacht, and came here,” she says, as security tries to keep party supporters’ tempers from flaring, particularly after the women call them fascists.
Jokes are par for the course as Ms. Meloni crisscrosses Italy to whip up support for her party ahead of elections on Sunday, Sept. 25. The far-right politician looks likely to become Italy’s first female prime minister, as the country is gripped by political and economic upheaval. She has waged a slick communication campaign, using speeches peppered with anecdotes to suit each region. Her messages have something for everyone: fiscal relief, youth employment, secure borders, products and children made by Italians in Italy, regaining some sovereignty from the European Union, and turning Italy into a renewable energy hub.
But Ms. Meloni’s rise to the
