Italian populist parties lead national elections

Italy’s populist and anti-establishment parties emerged with the biggest wins in Sunday’s national elections, according to preliminary results. But none of the parties secured enough votes to govern without a coalition, a fractured result that could lead to a hung parliament. The anti-establishment Five Star Movement party, led by 31-year-old Luigi Di Maio, emerged with 32 percent of the vote. Di Maio said his party felt responsible to govern Italy and remained “open to speaking to all the political forces in the country.” The center-right coalition, led by former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, gained 37 percent of the vote. In a surprise move, the anti-immigration Eurosceptic League, led by Matteo Salvini, earned nearly 18 percent of the vote, making it the lead party in the center-right coalition. “It’s an extraordinary victory, which fills us with pride, joy, and responsibility,” Salvini said Monday. The ruling center-left Democratic Party won about 19 percent of the vote, a major loss. Italian anti-establishment parties have soared in popularity as the country struggles with a financial crisis and the ongoing wave of migration from Africa and the Middle East that has brought more than 600,000 people across the border since 2013.