1/20/2023
Leaders of the right-wing coalition government. Photo credit: Gregorio Borgia
By Veronica Marcone
The America-Eurasia Center
US-European Program
www.eurasiacenter.org
The America-Eurasia Business Coalition
www.usebc.org
On September 25th, 2022, Italy held snap parliamentary elections to form a new government in response to
Prime Minister Mario Draghi’s resignation. The center-right coalition was favored in pre-election polls and
eventually ended up winning, taking more than 40% of the votes. However, voter engagement was at an all-
time low with only 63.9%. The party led by Giorgia Meloni, Fratelli d’Italia, won the majority of the center-
right votes (26%) making her the first woman to ever be elected Prime Minister in Italy. Head of State
President Sergio Mattarella declared her fit for the role, officially authorizing her to work on forming her
new government. The following is an overview of the newly elected Ministers who make up the government
of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
The Prime Minister – Giorgia Meloni
Her first big role in politics came in 2006, at the age of 29, becoming Vice President of the Chamber of
Deputies. In 2008, she became Minister of Youth in the Berlusconi Government. In 2012 she co-founded the
Fratelli d’Italia Party. In the 2019 elections the party took 6.5% of the votes, still in the shadow of the two
largest center right parties: Lega and Forza Italia. In 2020, she was elected president of the Party of
Conservatives and European Reformists. In 2022, she won a plurality of votes, 26%, which gave her the
opportunity to be elected as the first woman Prime Minister and form the new Government of Italy.
The Minister of Economy – Giancarlo Giorgetti
He was National Secretary for the Lombardy League from 2002 to 2012 and leader of the North League from
2013 to 2014. He was president of the Balance Chamber Commission from 2001 and 2006 and from 2008 to
2013. He was Minister of Economic Development in the previous government.
Infrastructure and Sustainable Mobility Minister – Matteo Salvini
Vice President in the previous government he is now serving as a Senator and Secretary for his party ‘Lega’.
He has a large following on social media and is known for his harsh stance on immigration as he is in favor
of closing all seaports to prevent any illegal immigration in the country. He also favors the implementation of
a flat tax and is an avid Eurosceptic and criticizes the EU for the sanctions on Russia.
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Vice President – Antonio Tajani
Co-founder of the Italian coalition party ‘Forza Italia’ in 1994. In the same year he was elected to represent
the party in the European Parliament. In 2017 he became President of the European Parliament as well. He
resigned that position a year later to become Vice President and coordinator of the party he co-founded.
Minister of Defense – Guido Crosetto
Known to be a good mediator and very straightforward, he began his career in the Christian Democratic
Party. He is co-founder of the current ruling party Fratelli d’Italia, he is a close counselor of President
Meloni. He is also president of AIAD, the Association of Defense and Aerospace.
Minister of Justice – Carlo Nordio
As a former judge, he is known for dealing with cases of infrastructure corruption. He has also been a
consultant for the Parliamentary Commission for Terrorism and Disasters as well as President of the Reform
of the Criminal Code Commission. In past elections he was elected to the Deputy Chamber for the leading
party Fratelli d’Italia.
Minister of the Environment and Energy Security – Gilberto Pichetto Fratin
He was appointed Vice President of the Piedmont region and has taught economics in technical institutions.
In 1995 he became assessor of the Industry, Artisanship and Commerce. In 2008, he was elected Senator for
the People of Liberty. In 2021 he sat as under-Secretary of State in the Minister of Economic Development
in the previous government. He has been re-elected in the Chamber in the last elections.
Minister of Labor and Social Policies – Marina Calderone
She was elected president of the National Council of the Order of Job Consultants in 2005. She specializes in
dealing with great companies’ crises. She has also been twice a counselor for Leonardo, a tech company
known for aerospace, security, and defense.
Minister of European Affairs and Cohesion Policies – Raffaele Fitto
He is the co-founder of the Christian Democratic Movement for Liberty in 1998, which was eventually
absorbed into the party ‘Forza Italia’. He was elected president of the Apulia region in the year 2000. In
2015, he decided to depart Forza Italia and found his own political party which was named ‘Direction Italy’
and eventually got absorbed by ‘Fratelli d’Italia.’
Minister of Education and Merit – Giuseppe Valditara
He was a university professor in Piedmont and Rome where he taught history of Roman rights. He also
served as Dean of the Law School in the European University of Rome until 2011. He is now closely
associated with Matteo Salvini.
Minister of University and Research – Anna Maria Bernini
She became Minister of European Policies in 2011 with Berlusconi’s government. In 2021 she was promoted
by Berlusconi to National Vice-Coordinator of Forza Italia alongside Antonio Tajani, with the task of
coordinating the activities of the party with the Senate, Chamber of Deputies and European Parliament.
Minister of Health – Orazio Schillaci
Former president of Tor Vergata University and Doctor, he has also been Director of the operative unit of
nuclear medicine since 2008 and has over 120 specialized publications. In his own words, his program
consists of “generating and sharing knowledge and culture in the social and economic sphere of the country
to promote the role of universities as the pole of progress and sustainable development” .
Minister of Family, Birth, and Equal Opportunity – Eugenia Roccella
She served as Undersecretary of Health when Silvio Berlusconi was Prime Minister. In her youth she was a
prominent feminist activist, however in recent years she has moderated some of her previously radical
positions. She now advocates for the traditional family in the Catholic sense formed by man and woman.
Minister of Sports and Youth – Andrea Abodi
Specializing in the sports industry and the development of sports marketing, he has served as President of the
National Professional League of the Soccer B Series. He is currently President of the Institute of Sports
Credit and Committee of Special Funds and counselor of the Italian Bank Association.
Minister of Agriculture and Nutrition – Francesco Lollobrigida
Since 2018 he has been parliamentary leader of Fratelli d’Italia in the Chamber of Deputies. He is the
brother-in-law of the current President with whom he co-founded the party. He will remain parliamentary
leader in the Chamber with the new government in place.
News Source:
Biarella, L. (2022). Legge di Bilancio 2023: il testo in Gazzetta Ufficiale. Retrieved January 29, 2023, from
https://www.altalex.com/documents/news/2022/12/30/legge-di-bilancio-2023
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