Stefano Caldoro’s center right coalition wins in Campania

Stefano Caldoro with Premier Silvio Berlusconi on 18 March 2010 during the campaign for governor of the Campania Region (photo from Caldoro's campaign site at http://www.caldoropresidente.it/foto/)

Stefano Caldoro, the candidate for the center-right coalition for governor of the Campania Region, has won the elections held on 28 and 29 March 2010, and the parties in his coalition have also conquered the majority of seats in the Regional Council. Caldoro took 54.25% of the vote, against Vicenzo de Luca, the candidate for the center-left coalition, who earned 43.04%, Paolo Ferrero, with 1.35%, who ran for the “federation of the left”, and Roberto Fico with 1.34%, representing another leftist formation, the “five stars movement”. Caldoro will be replacing Antonio Bassolino, the outgoing center-left governor, who held the post for the past ten years.

Only 62.96% of the approximately 5 million eligible voters cast their ballots during the elections in Campania.

The results in Campania follow the general trend in the elections held in ten other Italian regions. The results allow Premier Silvio Berlusconi to claim victory for his center-right government because his coalition has increased the regional governments that it administers from two to six, leaving four to the center left. The center-right won in Campania, Lazio, Piedmont, and Calabria, and it held on to Lombardy and Veneto. The center-left was able to hold on only to five regions: Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany, Liguria, Umbria, and Basilicata.

In Campania, Stefano Caldoro’s victory was cheered by those who are seeking a total break with the style of the outgoing governor, Antonio Bassolino, whose administration was marred by the accusation of cronyism, favoritism, and overall inefficiency. During the Bassolino years, the region has been at the center of international attention due to the garbage crisis. Stefano Caldoro is particularly concerned that Bassolino is continuing to make political appointments to regionally managed firms while he is on his way out, without coordinating such appointments with the incoming government.

Political scientists are analyzing the results of the elections in Campania to understand the effect of the decision of 37.04% of the eligible voters to not show up at the polls. Caldoro and the center-right won with a majority of those who showed up to vote, and there is no doubt that he and his coalition are the winners. However, when results are compared to the total eligible voters, an interesting scenario appears.

1. The “party” of non voters is at 37.04%.
2. The “party” of those who left the ballot empty or annulled it is at 3.84%.
The total of these first two groups sums to an alarming 40.87% of the eligible voters.

3. Caldoro and the center-right coalition obtained 32.08% of the eligible vote.
4. De Luca and the center-left coalition obtained 25.45% of the eligible vote.
5. Ferrero and Fico, and their smaller leftist coalitions obtained 1.60% of the eligible vote.

One of the messages coming from the citizens of the Campania Region is that Caldoro’s majority and De Luca’s minority in the Regional Council will need to work hard on regaining the trust of the electorate towards the whole political world in Campania. The ten years of the Bassolino government and the inept and often complicit opposition lead by the center-right have damaged the trust and confidence of the voters towards local politicians. The “trasformismo” (a political term used in Italy at the turn of the XIX century to describe turncoat politicians) of major leaders of the political center in Campania, such as Ciriaco De Mita and Clemente Mastella, who supported Bassolino and the center-left until 2008, and the complete face about of major personalities in the health care services, who abandoned the center-left in the last ten days of the electoral competition, after receiving major political favors from Bassolino, have dealt a final blow to the trust and confidence of voters in the political process.

Caldoro is now at work to set up the new Regional government. He has announced that he will concentrate on nominating top quality technicians and specialists to hold posts his government. His job will be particularly difficult in fending off the turncoats who brought him the necessary votes to win, especially those in the health care field. If he is able to put together a decent Regional government he might be able to increase the level of trust and confidence in the political process on the part of the citizens of the Campania region. This, on its own merit, would be a major accomplishment on the part of Stefano Caldoro.