Italian Democratic Party Splits in the Lower House

The Italian President finally opens negotiations for the next administration today, a month after the general election.  Unfortunately for the self-seeking Bersani, the Democratic Party has split. In the voting for the Party leadership in the Lower House  (the equivalent in the UK would be, more or less, the chief whip) Bersani attempted to foist a candidate onto the assembled Democrat MPs by demanding his candidate be elected 'by acclamation'.  As the candidate is a full time, full working life, Bersani faction, Party creep this attempt to close ranks round Bersani himself was met with silence, followed by a request for a secret ballot.  Trade union MPs then tried to insist on no ballot.  MPs insisted right back.  The vote split the Party with a third denying support; as there was only one candidate (nice, democratic, Bersani-ites) ballot papers had to be left blank.

So we now have a third of the Lower House majority Party voting en bloc against the imposed leadership.   The comrades tried to explain this unfortunate and very public demonstration of their smaller than they pretend support by claiming the bloc to be supporters of Matteo Renzi but the evidence is that those 87 votes against the leadership came from across the Party political spectrum, united only by their antipathy to the organised proto-communist and trade union faction.

The Head of State is today to be presented by Bersani with 'a unanimously agreed Party programme' and a claim on the premiership.  The Democratic Party has no majority in the Upper House and, as has just been shown, no control over all its own members in the Lower.