ROME – The Prime Minister designate Mario Draghi on Thursday morning arrived in Rome from his home in the Città della Pieve to start his first day of consultations with party leaders, having been giving the mandate by President Sergio Mattarella on Wednesday.

  Mattarella has not given a deadline or any restrictions to Draghi for his first task, that of forming a majority coalition, but it is clear that the head of state will be expecting a quick decision given the state of the pandemic, according to political commentators.

  Most parties have not yet expressed their full official support, or not, for Draghi, with many saying they are still unclear on his policies. Forza Italia, led by Silvio Berlusconi, have voiced support for Draghi in the past, though are waiting to hear his policies before addressing their position. 

  Dario Franceschini, the Minister for Cultural Heritage, Activities and Tourism, and member of the Democratic Party (PD), has expressed support for Draghi, saying in an interview with the Huffington Post, "today I say to our friends of the 5 Star Movement, be careful, in the face of even greater problems, not to topple the parties, be careful ... to not produce a paradoxical outcome" by breaking up the majority and letting the right take power. The PD have all but officially announced their support for Draghi.  

  Andrea Orlando, the deputy secretary of the Democratic Party, has said, "we hope that this majority will respond to the call of the head of state for a wide majority. Otherwise, if after Renzi's tarantella we have to submit to Salvini we would not have done a great service to the country." 

  Neither of the two biggest political parties, the Lega or the 5 Star Movement (M5S), have officially announced their plan, though M5S, still vocal supporters of the outgoing Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, do not yet seem to be as willing to side with Draghi as the Lega. Matteo Salvini, leader of the Lega, has said, “if there is a project, I am willing to put myself out there regardless of the interests of the Lega, is there is a team up to the task and a clear project, if there are these conditions, we will absolutely participate.” However, Salvini conceded that he has not yet discussed anything with Draghi.

  Some political commentators have reported that in a meeting on Wednesday night Draghi offered Conte a role in his upcoming government, either as deputy PM or minister for foreign affairs, in an attempt to win more votes of the M5S, however this has not been confirmed by Palazzo Chigi. M5S support for Draghi will be crucial if there is to be continuity with the policies of the last coalition - the government may veer to the right if Draghi is forced to accept the support of the right-wing Lega. 

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