2010 Apulian regional election

Italian regional election 2010 Apulian regional election Apulia legislative no 2005 Apulian regional election 2005 2015 Apulian regional election 2015 All 70 seats of the Regional Council36 seats needed for a majority 28–29 March 2010 160x160px Nichi Vendola Left Ecology Freedom EF3E3E Centre-left coalition (Italy) 42 seats, 49.8% 39 3 1,036,683 48.7% 1.1% 160x160px Rocco Palese The People of Freedom Centre-right coalition (Italy) 0A6BE1 28 seats, 49.2% 27 1 899,590 42.3% 6.9% President Elected President Nichi Vendola SEL Nichi Vendola SEL File:Puglia_2010_Coalizioni.png The Apulian regional election of 2010 took place in Apulia, Italy, on 28–29 March 2010. The outgoing President Nichi Vendola (SEL) was elected for a second-consecutive term, after having won a primary election in which he beat a Democrat and having benefited from the split of the centre-right, whose two candidates jointly won 51.0% of the vote. Vendola's party, SEL, had a strong showing in the Region by coming third with 9.7% of the vote, after The People of Freedom (31.1%) and the Democratic Party (20.8%). Background The incumbent left-wing president Nichi Vendola, who in 2005 surprisingly defeated a centrist in the centre-left primary election and then the outgoing President Raffaele Fitto, was under attack by his own coalition. Vendola, a gay communist President in a fairly conservative region, would have found hard to get re-election in a time when the centre-right led by Silvio Berlusconi was ahead of the centre-left both in Apulia and the whole country. Moreover Vendola, after having left the Communist Refoundation Party in early 2009, instead of joining the Democratic Party (PD), the largest party of the centre-left, started a small outfit named Left and Freedom and launched his bid.http://archiviostorico.corriere.it/2009/novembre/27/Vendola_non_cede_corro_alle_co_9_091127025.shtml Archivio Corriere della Sera archiviostorico.corriere.ithttp://archiviostorico.corriere.it/2009/dicembre/09/Campania_scelte_dopo_voto_Cosentino_co_9_091209039.shtml Archivio Corriere della Sera archiviostorico.corriere.it The Democrats acknowledge that they needed a larger coalition in order to beat the centre-right and they were thus trying to convince Vendola to give up his bid and to endorse a more centrist candidate that could obtain the support of the Union of Christian and Centre Democrats (UDC) and Adriana Poli Bortone's I the South movement. Michele Emiliano, Mayor of Bari and PD regional leader, had been constantly mentioned as a possible candidate who would have received the support of the UDC.http://archiviostorico.corriere.it/2009/novembre/26/Puglia_campo_Emiliano_svolta_tra_co_8_091126028.shtml Archivio Corriere della Sera archiviostorico.corriere.ithttp://archiviostorico.corriere.it/2009/novembre/29/sia_Nichi_indicare_suo_erede_co_9_091129088.shtml Archivio Corriere della Sera archiviostorico.corriere.it For her part Poli Bortone might have been interested in the race but her right-wing upbringing (she was a member of the Italian Social Movement and of National Alliance) would undoubtedly have stirred the left.http://www.aprileonline.info/notizia.php?id=13837 aprileonline.info www.aprileonline.info In a succession of events between late December 2009 and January 2010, Emiliano turned against Vendolahttp://archiviostorico.corriere.it/2009/dicembre/21/Emiliano_accusa_Vendola_Lavora_contro_co_9_091221006.shtml Archivio Corriere della Sera archiviostorico.corriere.it (whom he supported until then), asked his party's regional assembly to unanimously endorse himself.https://corrieredelmezzogiorno.corriere.it/bari/notizie/politica/2009/26-dicembre-2009/emiliano-disponibile-candidarmisenza-porre-alcuna-condizione-1602210160308.shtml Emiliano manda sms: senza l'unanimità non mi candido - Corriere del Mezzogiorno corrieredelmezzogiorno.corriere.it The assembly of the party was suspended because of clashes between Emiliano and Vendola supporters,http://archiviostorico.corriere.it/2009/dicembre/29/Caos_Puglia_salta_assemblea_del_co_8_091229024.shtml Archivio Corriere della Sera archiviostorico.corriere.it then Emiliano accepted to contest a primary election with Vendolahttp://archiviostorico.corriere.it/2009/dicembre/30/Puglia_alle_primarie_Emiliano_accetta_co_8_091230049.shtml Archivio Corriere della Sera archiviostorico.corriere.it and finally withdrew from the race,http://www.repubblica.it/2009/12/sezioni/politica/regionali-2010-2/emiliano-ritiro/emiliano-ritiro.html Puglia, Emiliano ritira la candidatura "Ma la mia non è una rinuncia" - Politica - Repubblica.it www.repubblica.it leaving the PD without a strong candidate. Finally Vendola was chosen as candidate of the centre-left in a primary election on 25 January 2010.http://archiviostorico.corriere.it/2010/gennaio/25/Successo_Vendola_governatore_batte_Democratici_co_8_100125087.shtml Archivio Corriere della Sera archiviostorico.corriere.it The People of Freedom (PdL) of Berlusconi and former President Raffaele Fitto subsequently chose Rocco Palese, leader of Forza Italia–PdL group in the Regional Council and former Vice President of Fitto,http://archiviostorico.corriere.it/2010/gennaio/25/Pdl_sceglie_sfidante_per_Regione_co_8_100125118.shtml Archivio Corriere della Sera archiviostorico.corriere.it while the UDC launched Poli Bortone.https://corrieredelmezzogiorno.corriere.it/bari/notizie/politica/2010/26-gennaio-2010/poli-bortone-io-corro-vincere--1602349288712.shtml Poli Bortone: io corro per vincere - Corriere del Mezzogiorno corrieredelmezzogiorno.corriere.it Centre-left primary election After that Emiliano renounced his bid, the PD proposed Francesco Boccia as its candidatehttp://archiviostorico.corriere.it/2010/gennaio/05/Puglia_prova_con_Boccia_dell_co_8_100105020.shtml Archivio Corriere della Sera archiviostorico.corriere.it and the UDC endorsed him.http://archiviostorico.corriere.it/2010/gennaio/06/Puglia_Casini_Boccia_Sosteniamo_svolta_co_8_100106007.shtml Archivio Corriere della Sera archiviostorico.corriere.it However, as Vendola did not intend to withdraw from the race, the PD accepted to run a coalition primary election between Vendola and Boccia.http://archiviostorico.corriere.it/2010/gennaio/16/Puglia_tornano_primarie_tra_Vendola_co_9_100116017.shtml Archivio Corriere della Sera archiviostorico.corriere.it This was a re-edition of the 2005 primary election, in which Boccia was narrowly defeated by Vendola.http://archiviostorico.corriere.it/2009/dicembre/31/Attenti_alle_primarie_nel_2005_co_9_091231033.shtml Archivio Corriere della Sera archiviostorico.corriere.it On 25 January 2010 an unprecedented number of Apulian citizens turned out to vote in the primary and Vendola trounced Boccia in the primary, by winning over 67% of the votes cast. Candidate Party Votes % Nichi Vendola SEL137,52167.2 Francesco Boccia PD66,99132.8Total204,512100.0 Source: Nichi Vendola website Results thumb|right|300px|The elected Regional Council by coalition: Centre-left coalition darkgray Centre-left (39)Centre-right coalition darkgray Centre-right (27)Union of the Centre (2002) darkgray Centrists (4) + 28–29 March 2010 Apulian regional election results300px|center Candidates Votes % Seats Parties Votes % Seats Nichi Vendola1,036,63848.691 Democratic Party410,39520.7519 Left Ecology Freedom (incl. PSI)Four regional councillors out of the eleven elected by Left Ecology Freedom, including Onofrio Introna, President of the Regional Council, belong to the Italian Socialist Party. See http://www.partitosocialista.it/site/il-partito_consiglieri-regionali/491/consiglieri-regionali.aspx Partito Socialista 2010-07-29 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20100817195920/http://www.partitosocialista.it/site/il-partito_consiglieri-regionali/491/consiglieri-regionali.aspx 2010-08-17.192,6049.749 Italy of Values127,8656.475 Apulia for Vendola109,3825.535 Federation of the Left – Greens64,4413.26– Bonino-Pannella List6,0050.30–Total910,69246.0538 Rocco Palese899,59042.251 The People of Freedom615,06431.1020 Apulia First of All139,3797.054 Apulians for Rocco Palese95,0704.812 Alliance of the Centre11,0470.56– Union of Democrats for Europe9,1250.46– Pensioners' Party4,7770.24–Total874,46244.2226 Adriana Poli Bortone185,3708.71– Union of the Centre128,5426.504 I the South – MPA57,9012.93–Total186,443 9.434 Michele Rizzi7,3760.35– Communist Alternative Party5,8340.30– Total candidates2,128,974100.002 Total parties1,977,431100.0068Source: Ministry of the Interior References Category:Elections in Apulia Category:21st century in Apulia Category:2010 elections in Italy