Italy’s Tourism Minister, Daniela Santanchè, finally resigned yesterday afternoon (25th March). She gave in to an unprecedented public call from the prime minister, insisting she was no scapegoat for the government’s referendum defeat.
Santanchè’s departure on Wednesday came after Meloni took the highly unusual step of calling on her publicly, by press statement, to stand down. This move, analysts say, revealed more about the prime minister’s political weakness than her authority.
Santanchè, a prominent and characteristically combative member of Meloni’s Brothers of Italy (FdI) party, has been under investigation since 2023 over allegations of fraud and false accounting related to her business activities. She denies any wrongdoing. Despite persistent opposition calls for her resignation, she had until this week enjoyed Meloni’s full backing — making the prime minister’s public reversal all the more striking.
In a statement addressed directly to Meloni, Santanchè confirmed she was stepping down but was candid about her reservations. She said she had been unwilling to go immediately because she did not want to be made a “scapegoat” for the government’s defeat in Sunday and Monday’s referendum on judicial reform. “I have no problem saying: ‘I obey’ in doing what you ask,” she said, adding that she could not hide “a bit of bitterness” over the way her ministerial career had ended.
Third resignation this week
Her resignation was the third from within government ranks since the referendum result came in on Monday, the first significant electoral defeat of Meloni’s premiership. Justice Ministry Undersecretary Andrea Delmastro resigned on Tuesday after it emerged he had held a stake in a restaurant linked to the Camorra mafia and had failed to disclose it to parliament. Delmastro had also previously been given an 8-month suspended sentence for revealing confidential information about imprisoned anarchist Alfredo Cospito.
Justice Ministry Chief of Staff Giusi Bartolozzi also quit on Tuesday, following a furore over remarks she made during the referendum campaign in which she likened the judiciary to a “firing squad” that needed to be eliminated. Bartolozzi also faces the possibility of trial over Italy’s release and repatriation last year of a Libyan general wanted for alleged war crimes.
Meloni herself, along with Justice Minister Carlo Nordio, has rejected opposition calls to resign over the referendum result. The prime minister was in Algeria on Wednesday for talks on boosting gas supplies from north Africa when the resignation was confirmed.
PMs not allowed to simply sack a minister
The constitutional constraints of the Italian system meant that Meloni could not simply sack Santanchè. Under Italy’s constitution, the prime minister may propose ministers to the president, who makes the formal appointment, but has no power to remove them unilaterally. Therefore, making a public call to resign is the most direct lever available. That she felt compelled to use it openly, rather than through the customary behind-closed-doors pressure, drew sharp commentary.
“In the history of the Italian republic, I don’t believe a prime minister has ever been forced to admit their political impotence with a press release,” said Enrico Borghi of the centrist Italia Viva party. He added that the episode revealed “tensions and rather significant clashes within the ruling coalition.” He contrasted the current moment with Meloni’s previous image as the strongest leader in Europe, saying she now appeared unable to manage her own executive.
The referendum result and its aftermath have galvanised the opposition ahead of general elections expected in 2027. Democratic Party leader Elly Schlein described the referendum turnout as a moment for Italian democracy and called on Meloni to refocus on health, education, and jobs. Analysts suggest that while early elections might be tempting, economic pressures and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East make them unlikely.
Meloni has led one of the most stable governments in the recent history of the Italian republic since coming to power in October 2022. This week has been a significant test of that stability and the most turbulent of her premiership so far.
