Prime Minister of Italy Giuseppe Conte is planning on resigning and could do so as early as Tuesday, The Washington Post reported Monday.
The country is working to rebuild and recover from the pandemic, reported The Washington Post. The resignation is characterized by some as a step toward forming a new government and more stable majority, according to the New York Post. (RELATED: Italy Imposes New Coronavirus Lockdowns, Bans Travel Between Regions)
Conte recently lost his majority in the Italian Senate after a critical dispute over how to use funds given by the European Union to help Italy rebuild from the pandemic’s devastation, according to multiple reports.
#UPDATE Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced he will resign Tuesday, in what media reports said was an attempt to build a new government after weeks of political turmoil https://t.co/WwzoGxPCxd
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) January 25, 2021
“My aim is to find an agreement that gives a clear political perspective to govern until the end of the legislation,” said Conte, according to the New York Post. Using this new coalition, Conte could reportedly return as prime minister. It is just as likely that the government will form a new majority and that new majority will pick the prime minister, according to The Washington Post.
The government is looking to find a new majority party, but if that does not happen, the country will have to hold elections in the coming months, reported The Wall Street Journal.
“It is painfully complicated,” Giovanni Orsina, the director of the school of government at Luiss Guido Carli University in Rome told The Washington Post.
If neither of these things happen, the country would need to head to the polls for a snap election amid the ongoing pandemic. In this case, the far right is reportedly favored to gain power. Orsina told The Washington Post this is the “least likely” option.