Silvio Berlusconi has won his third Italian election with a bigger than expected swing to the centre right, but the media magnate said it would not be easy to solve deep economic problems. A strong mandate should enable Berlusconi to push reforms through parliament, but many Italians are disillusioned with politics and doubt any government can quickly cure the ills of Italy's fourth-largest economy.
He said his priorities were settling the future of state-controlled Alitalia, which the outgoing administration was struggling to privatize, and clean up a long-standing garbage crisis in Naples. Berlusconi's pledges include cutting taxes while reducing public debt, liberalizing the economy and getting tough on crime.
Pollsters' projections, based on partial results, gave Berlusconi a 99-seat majority in the 630-member lower house and an advantage of up to 30 seats in the Senate, which has 315 elected and seven lifetime senators.
A surprise winner in the election was Berlusconi's junior coalition partner, the anti-immigration Northern League which doubled its result over the 2006 election to around 8 percent. That result will help strengthen Berlusconi's majority, but analysts said it might give the League 'kingmaker' powers.
The big loser of the election was the left. Excluded from Veltroni's Democratic Party, the Rainbow Left, made up of communists and greens, fared so badly it may not win any seats. With many smaller parties facing a similar fate, Christian Democratic chief Pierferdinando Casini said parliament may have only five parties, compared with some 20 last time -- a major turnaround for Italy's traditionally fragmented politics. The new constellation will bring an unusual clarity and simplicity to Italian politics.
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