Thread by @DaveKeating

One hour until polls close in the 🇮🇹#ItalianElection. Here's what to expect

11pm: Exit poll published
Monday morning: Official results published
??: Italian President Mattarella will decide who has the best chance of forming a governing coalition, invite him/her to become PM.

So in one hour we'll get an idea from the exit polls whether this was a blow-out for the far right and Meloni is sure to be invited to form a government, or whether it's more close and it make take some time for President Mattarella to decide who to invite.

If the vote is very close with no obvious coalition, the 🇮🇹president becomes very powerful. He then has leeway to propose his own ideas for government formation.

The president also technically has the power to choose ministers, though usually he does so based on PM instructions.

🇮🇹Polls predict that the neo-fascist Brothers of Italy (FdI) will get the most seats, followed by centre-left Democrats (PD).

Last election in 2018 saw the populist 5Stars get the most seats and form a government with far-right Lega as a minority partner. politico.eu/europe-poll-of…

Neofascist Brothers of Italy has benefitted by being the only major party in opposition outside of the coalition government of national unity under Mario Draghi.

Far-right Lega's popularity took a major hit from being part of that, and their voters migrated right to FdI.

While we wait for #ItalyElection result, here's some background reading on Meloni's neo-fascist party, which started in '46 as MSI and became the National Alliance in the 90s and Brothers of Italy in the 00s.

#Meloni has been a member of all 3 iterations.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_S…