Silvio Berlusconi definitively acquitted in the Ruby case, Flavio Tosi out of the League and about to run for Governor of the Veneto. These are the two news stories from last night that could rock the center-right after the ups and downs of recent days that had their epicenter in the parliamentary somersaults of Forza Italia on the reforms.
The Court of Cassation upheld the second instance ruling in the Ruby case, definitively acquitting Berlusconi of the charges of extortion and child prostitution. Berlusconi expressed "a lot of happiness" saying he is convinced that the sentence will have the effect of reuniting Forza Italia after the divisions of recent days on the constitutional reform and on the line to be taken towards the electoral reform and the reform of the Senate promoted by the Renzi government. A new phase is therefore opening for the reforms and in the next few days we will see whether or not Forza Italia will retrace its steps, confirming the support for the institutional reforms which, albeit from the opposition, it had expressed with respect to the Renzi government.
Certainly Berlusconi's acquittal could facilitate a full return to the leadership of Forza Italia and also a new phase in the centre-right. From this point of view, however, yesterday brought another novelty: the secretary of the League Matteo Salvini ruled that Flavio Tosi, the mayor of Verona who opposes extremist and fascist tendencies, is out of the party. As a result, Tosi ponders running for the next regional elections in Veneto as an alternative to the outgoing Governor Zaia, supported by Salvini.
In the next few hours and days, therefore, the geography of the center-right could change with effects also on the Government and on the Democratic Party, but two facts will have to be verified: 1) if Berlusconi will confirm Brunetta's contradictory rancorous line on the reforms and rapprochement with Salvini or if he will return to the Pact of the Nazarene by isolating the League; 2) whether the divisions in the League will cause an electoral reversal or not in the next Regionals in Veneto and if Tosi will approach Alfano by strengthening the center area.
