The leader of Italia Viva (IV),
former premier Matteo Renzi, on Saturday said the party was out
of the electoral campaign in Liguria, where a broad centre-left
coalition including IV was supposed to back Andrea Orlando, a
leading member of the centre-left Democratic Party (PD), as
candidate to govern the Liguria region.
"It is a final breakup in Liguria, we are out of the electoral
campaign", Renzi told an Italia Viva party assembly after
Giuseppe Conte, leader of the populist Five-Star Movement (M5S)
expressed his opposition to IV being part of the coalition
including PD, the Green-Left Alliance (AVS), Azione and M5S.
"We are available to create a centre-left that is an alternative
to (Prime Minister Giorgia) Meloni, but not with a hat in our
hand", said Renzi.
"We are open to dialogue, but not to let Conte decide", Renzi
also said, adding that, with the move, the M5S leader "wants to
question" the leadership of PD head Elly Schlein, a promoter of
the broad centre-left coalition.
Liguria's election, after Giovanni Toti stepped down as
governor following an arrest on corruption charges, are
scheduled to be held on October 27-28.
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