Mattarella reluctantly accepted to be re-elected President at age 80. But the parties supporting Draghi were in a turmoil.
Sergio Mattarella, 80, did not want to be re-elected as Italian President, but he accepted there, after the parties did not agree on who would be his successor. Italy’s complex presidential election system – where, unlike most democracies, there is no direct election, with an electoral college, made up of 1009 deputies, senators or regional representatives – was blocked, with no candidate gaining sufficient support. , until Mattarella agreed to remain at his post. But the dispute was bitter, threatening to break the coalition between the populists Five Star Movement (M5S) and the centre-left Democratic Party (PD).
