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Viewing cable 06ROME276, ITALIAN ELECTIONS: PRODI LEADING THE RACE,

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
06ROME276 2006-01-31 12:34 2011-08-30 01:44 CONFIDENTIAL Embassy Rome
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
C O N F I D E N T I A L  ROME 000276 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/28/2016 
TAGS: PGOV IT ITALY NATIONAL ELECTIONS
SUBJECT: ITALIAN ELECTIONS: PRODI LEADING THE RACE, 
BERLUSCONI SETTING THE PACE 
 
REF: A. ROME 0239 
 
     B. 05 ROME 3996 
 
1. (C) SUMMARY:  Recent polls show that PM Silvio 
Berlusconi's center-right (CR) coalition has gained on Romano 
Prodi's center-left (CL) coalition. Prodi's lead has slipped 
from 8 percentage points last summer to 4.5 percentage points 
in January.  In the last month, Berlusconi has set the tone 
of the campaign.  Instead of focusing on the economy or 
Italy's involvement in Iraq, areas where Berlusconi might be 
politically weak, the public debate has centered on 
Berlusconi's ubiquitous media presence, the Unipol-Democrats 
of the Left financial imbroglio and the date for dissolving 
parliament.  Berlusconi's recent surge and his ability to 
control the debate has most experts saying Italy's April 9 
national election remains too close to call; we agree.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
------------------------------ 
CENTER-LEFT AHEAD IN THE POLLS 
------------------------------ 
 
2. (C) A poll conducted January 25-16 shows the center-left 
coalition led by Romano Prodi leading PM Silvio Berlusconi's 
center-right coalition by 51.5 percent to 47.0 percent.  An 
early January poll gave the CL 52.1 percent and the CR 45.9 
percent.  For Berlusconi, the most recent poll is an 
improvement since last summer when he trailed by 8 percentage 
points.  Berlusconi recently has claimed publicly that the 
center-right has surpassed the center-left in polls 
commissioned by Forza Italia.  Italy's prominent pollsters 
all agree that is not possible.  Forza Italia's coordinator 
for Lazio admitted to Poloff that the center-left maintains 
the lead but claimed that Berlusconi's campaign talents and 
the center-left's internal troubles mean the race is not over. 
 
3. (U) A national poll conducted January 25-26 asked the 
question," If national elections were held tomorrow, for 
which party would you vote?" and produced the following 
results:  Forza Italia (20.5), National Alliance (12.5), 
Union of Christian Democrats of the Center (6.0), Northern 
League (4.0), Other CR parties (4), Democrats of the Left 
(23), Daisy (9.5), Communist Renewal (8.5), Green (2), Di 
Pietro List (2) combined Radicals and Italian Socialists 
(1.5), Other CL (5). 
 
------------------------ 
BERLUSCONI SETS THE PACE 
------------------------ 
 
4. (U) Despite trailing in the polls, having led Italy into a 
military conflict in Iraq unpopular in Italy and having been 
Prime Minister during a four-year period of anemic economic 
growth, Berlusconi has managed to set the campaign debate. 
After regional elections in April 2006, conventional wisdom 
was that the center-left was destined to ride to victory in 
national elections based on a wave of discontent with the war 
in Iraq and poor economic performance.  Those two issues have 
been almost entirely absent from the political debate since 
the electoral campaign recommenced after the Christmas 
holidays. 
 
5. (C) Berlusconi set the tone in January when leaked 
wiretaps connected Democrats of the Left (DS) Party Secretary 
Piero Fassino to the disgraced former head of Unipol Bank. 
Berlusconi implied on national television that DS leaders had 
significant involvement in the corruption scandal and even 
made a very public visit to prosecuting magistrates in which 
he presented information on DS Secretary Fassino/ DS 
President D'Alema meetings with Unipol officials.  Even if 
those allegations proved irrelevant to the investigation, 
news of a DS-Unipol banking scandal dominated the press for 
weeks and spurred a strong internal debate within the DS. 
The DS left-wing is strongly opposed to any affiliation with 
traditional financial interests and the episode has weakened 
the reformists Fassino and D'Alema.  Ominously, a prominent 
Forza Italia official warned Poloff that the Unipol scandal 
would strengthen the radical-left (read Communist Renewal 
Party) at the expense of the DS. 
 
6. (U) Since January, Berlusconi has appeared on nearly every 
political talk show in Italy while Prodi has been all but 
absent.  Other center-left party leaders have faced-off 
against Berlusconi, but the issues have been less important 
than the fact that Berlusconi's media presence has been 
ubiquitous.  In fact, Berlusconi's media blitz has been the 
most debated political topic for the past two weeks. 
 
7. (SBU) The other prominent political issue has been the 
 
 
conflict between Berlusconi and President Ciampi regarding 
the date for the dissolution of parliament.  Berlusconi 
risked an institutional conflict with the Presidency but won 
a postponement of the date from January 29 to February 11. 
According to Berlusconi, this postpones the date in which 
campaign period restrictions on media take effect.  Ciampi's 
disagreement with this claim is the new headline.  Besides 
allowing Berlusconi to maintain his high profile, his 
coalition has used the extra time to pass legislation 
permitting the use of lethal force in self-defense (popular 
with the Northern League) and to move forward legislation 
reforming the criminalization of narcotics 
usage/distribution.  The new date for the dissolution of 
parliament corresponds with the opening of the Winter 
Olympics in Italy, which will certainly distract press 
attention for a few days. 
 
8. (C) Berlusconi has all but removed Iraq from the debate. 
As reported  A, Minister of Defense Martino's announcement of 
a withdrawal of Italian troops from Iraq by the end of 2006 
is similar to the center-left's position, even if we 
understand Berlusconi's policy to be slightly more nuanced. 
A DS Official called Poloff the day after Martino's 
announcement asking in total disbelief if the U.S. knew in 
advance that Martino would make the announcement.  When 
Poloff said the opposition should be pleased to see Italian 
troops coming home, he remarked that the timing of the 
announcement was certainly not meant to please center-left 
parties. 
 
----------------------- 
CENTER LEFT IN DISARRAY 
----------------------- 
 
9. (C) Berlusconi's maneuverings have disoriented the 
famously fractioned center-left coalition (B).  One Daisy 
Party official confided to Poloff that the entire center-left 
was depressed and just waiting to see what Berlusconi's next 
move will be.  Confirming this, a Daisy member of parliament 
told Naples Pol/Econ Officer that he was not optimistic about 
a center-left victory due the lingering effects of the Unipol 
and other scandals.  Union of Democrats for Europe, a small 
party currently aligned with Prodi, President Clemente 
Mastella is talking publicly of a future split inside the DS 
and hedging for a possible shift to the center-right. 
Meanwhile, Prodi has been all but absent from the political 
scene. 
 
------- 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
10. (C) COMMENT: Berlusconi's dominance of the campaign 
debate has lifted the spirits of his supporters and 
disoriented the opposition.  National elections are just 10 
weeks away and despite the center-left's continued lead, the 
race remains too close to call.  END COMMENT. 
SPOGLI 
 
 
NNNN 
 2006ROME00276 - Classification: CONFIDENTIAL