Italy’s President Mattarella re-elected, easing crisis

Electing the 80-year-old ended weeks of hand-wringing over whether prized Prime Minister Mario Draghi should be elevated, with many fearing such a move would have left the government rudderless at a highly sensitive time.The former constitutional court judge had repeatedly ruled out serving a second term, but gave in Saturday after Italy's bickering political parties failed to find another viable candidate.He was expected to be sworn in on Wednesday or Thursday. Although many expect him to leave before the end of his new seven-year term, he is likely to stay at least past elections scheduled for 2023.Draghi said the result, after eight rounds of voting over six days, was "wonderful news for Italians".Pope Francis hailed Mattarella's "generous" agreement to stay on during a period of uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic, which hit Italy hard.Draghi, a former European Central Bank chief brought in to lead a national unity government almost a year ago, had been touted for months as the most eligible head of state.Italy is banking on almost 200 billion euros ($222 billion) in EU funds to cement the trend, but the money from Brussels is dependent on a tight timetable of reforms.Guido Cozzi, professor of macroeconomics at the University of St. Gallen, told AFP an extension of Mattarella's mandate was "ideal for the financial markets".But the Repubblica daily pointed out that, with the campaign for the 2023 election already underway, the year ahead "risks being a replay of the shambles we've seen over the past few days".- 'Big sacrifice' -Billionaire former premier Silvio Berlusconi, who took a failed shot at the presidency himself, also said his party would ask Mattarella "to make a big sacrifice", as did the centre-left Democratic Party (PD).A double mandate is not entirely unprecedented. Mattarella was little-known to the public when elected president in 2015, known mostly for his brother's murder by the mafia in 1980, and for taking a stand as a minister against Berlusconi.ide/ar/ah... Via news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site https://www.news.com.au