Musumeci beats M5S in Sicily (2)

(ANSA) - Rome, November 6 - The centre right's Nello Musumeci was elected Sicilian governor Sunday beating the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement's (M5S) Giancarlo Cancelleri by about 40% to 35% with most votes counted.
    The centre-left candidate, Fabrizio Micari, came third on just under 19% in a blow to Democratic Party (PD) leader and ex-premier Matteo Renzi, after the leftwing splinter MDP group split the centre-left vote by backing its own candidate, Claudio Fava, who got just over 6%.
    The result, despite a low turnout with less than half eligible voters casting their votes, was a comeback triumph for centre-right Forza Italia (FI) leader Silvio Berlusconi who had campaigned heavily for Musumeci in the run-up to the vote, promising Sicilians everything from a bridge over the Messina Strait to a casino in Taormina.
    Berlusconi, whose FI ran with the anti-immigrant, anti-euro Northern League (LN) and the small rightist nationalist Brothers of Italy (FdI), saw the win as heralding victory in next year's general election, expected in March.
    Barring a surprise ruling by the European Court of Human Rights, the three-time former premier and media mogul cannot become premier because of a 2013 tax-fraud conviction, but he will again be standing as vote catcher.
    Berlusconi said Musumeci's win was a victory for the moderates who would again sweep the FI-LN-FdI alliance into office next March.
    Musumeci's election is a "victory for the moderates who believe in the possibility of a better future," said Berlusconi, who was swept from office by the 2011 euro crisis and had been sidelined by bunga bunga and corruption cases. "I wanted to thank the Sicilians for heeding my appeal," he said. "Sicily has chosen as I asked the road of change, of a real, serious and constructive change based on honesty, competence and experience," said the FI leader on his Facebook page. "I met many Sicilian voters over the past few days, I found anger and disappointment but also a desire to start again". Berlusconi said "after the definitive failure of the left's administration Sicily was at a crossroads: our positive revolution or the inconclusive rage of the M5S. "The great result of Forza Italia, which made possible the victory of the united centre right, means that Sicily has chosen the revolution of action, the liberal revolution, we stopped Sicily falling into the hands of the M5S and those who have never achieved anything, have never even managed a condominium, people who haven't worked. "My compliments and best wishes to Musumeci, he has the ability and strength to make it and we will be close to him." FdI leader Giorgia Meloni exulted, too, saying "Musumeci's win is quite clear".
    Musumeci said aftre his election became clear that "we must fight for Sicily and show what we can do".
    M5S leader Luigi Di Maio, on the other hand, said their cross-Sicily showing as the single biggest party is the start of a "wave" that will sweep them to power in the general election. He said that, even though they failed to land the governorship, "we are very satisfied...from here a wave is starting that in four months can take us to 40%." He said "we have a free, aware vote" and "we must communicate this vote to those who have abstained, many of them will be sorry in the next 2-3 months, when they see those who have speculated this far at work again". Di Maio said he was "convinced" that after the general election, the M5S "will be able to ask the Italian president to govern".
    Meanwhile Cancelleri, the losing M5S candidate, said he would not call Musumeci to concede defeat because his the centre-right man's victory was "contaminated by unpresentable people and by the complicity of the national media." Cancelleri reiterated the win was "contaminated by Nello Musumeci who candidated unpresentables".
    The defeat for Renzi, who said he would comment on the election on TV "tomorrow", spurred Di Maio to scrapped a debate he had challenged the PD) leader to, saying he was not a general-election competitor after the PD's poor showing in Sicily. The debate was meant to take place on Tuesday on La7 television.
    "I had asked for a debate with Renzi a few days ago, when he was the premier candidate of that political side," Di Maio, the Lower House's Deputy Speaker, said via Facebook. "The earthquake of the election in Sicily has completely changed this outlook. "I will debate with the person who will be named as premier candidate by that party or coalition. "The PD is political deceased. Our competitor is no longer Renzi or the PD.
    "Soon there will be a PD party meeting where his role will be thrown into doubt". Renzi said Di Maio was scared. "Di Maio is running away today," Renzi said on his Facebook page.
    "I'm sorry for my children to think that the Italian people risk being led by a leader who doesn't have courage. Who is a afraid of debate. Who makes up ridiculous excuses. "If a leader who wants to government Italy with these challenges (it has) is scared of a television studio, he is simply not a leader.
    "See you tomorrow at 21:30, on La7 (television): if Di Maio gets a shot of dignity, we'll be waiting for him in the studio.
    "Otherwise, we'll do it with the journalists".
    Some will contend the low turnout lessens the Sicilian elections' status as a bellwether for national elections.
    The turnout was 46.76%, meaning 2,179,474 of 4,661,111 people with the right to vote in the southern region did so between 8:00 and 22:00 on Sunday, compared to 2,203,165 votes in the regional elections five years ago. The turnout was higher than in 2012 in just three provinces out of nine - Messina 51.69% (compared to 51.24% last time), Catania 51.58% (51.09%) and Palermo 46.4% (46.28%).
    On Sunday an election also took place in the Roman municipality of Ostia, on the coast near the Italian capital. The M5S and a centre-right coalition are set to contest the runoff vote there after coming first and second respectively in Sunday's first round. Ostia is electing a new council two years after the previous one was dissolved for mafia infiltration.
    The M5S was the top party, with its candidate Giuliana Di Pillo getting 30.21% of the vote.
    Monica Picca, a member of the rightwing Brothers of Italy (FdI) party who was also backed by Berlusconi's FI and the League, got 26.68%.
    Athos De Luca, the candidate for the ruling PD, got 13.61%.
    The far-right CasaPound party registered huge gains, with candidate Luca Marsella getting 9.08% of the vote. Former parish priest Franco De Donno also did well, getting 8.61%.
    The runoff will take place November 19.
    photo: L-R, Musumeci, Salvini, Meloni and Berlusconi