Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi has won the confidence vote in the Senate, but 5 Star, the League, and Forza Italia abstain so he hasn’t got the national unity he wanted. He is expected to head to President imminently, expected to offer his resignation.

In a speech on Wednesday, Draghi indicated he was willing to stay on as prime minister if his feuding coalition partners could guarantee “sincere and concrete support” for him to continue.

A confidence vote will be held later on Wednesday to test whether lawmakers back him to remain in office. On the face of it, that vote will be challenging for Draghi to win.

If he loses, Draghi will likely resign, leading to an early election that would plunge Italy into months of upheaval. The right-wing parties would be expected to win and take power as part of a coalition with the opposition Brothers of Italy.

The departure of the 74-year-old former President of the European Central Bank would also deprive the EU of one of its most experienced leaders at a critical moment, with inflation soaring and war raging on its doorstep.

Wednesday’s voting marks the culmination of a crisis that has been brewing for months, as tensions built between Italy’s increasingly fractious coalition partners ahead of elections scheduled for next year.

source politico.eu