Italy: Meloni backs former Polish PM as new president of European conservative alliance

Rome: The Italian prime minister announced her support for Morawiecki on Sunday in Rome, during the final day of Atreju, the political gathering of Meloni’s party, Fratelli D’Italia (Brothers of Italy).

She said: “I believe that I have done my job and I want to announce that I will step down as president of The European Conservatives and Reformists party, a family that deserves to have a president who can take full care of it.

“We will be accepting candidates. I assume that my friend Mateusz Morawiecki will also be among those who will run.”

In response to the applause, she turned to Morawiecki and said “This applause confirms that we will support you in this battle that you are also waging for us.”

Morawiecki was the only non-Italian member of the ECR to attend the event.

The former Polish prime minister, an economist by profession, was previously considered a potential PiS candidate for Poland’s presidential elections next year.

However, the right-wing party chose to back independent candidate Karol Nawrocki instead, in what experts believe was an attempt to avoid alienating far-right and libertarian voters frustrated by the party’s “big state” approach during its time in government.

Morawiecki is also facing legal challenges at home, with him and members of his administration being accused of complicity in a ‘visas-for-cash’ scandal and mismanagement of funds resulting from an abortive attempt to organize a mail-in vote during the 2020 presidential elections.

Nawrocki, a 41-year-old historian, did not hold a senior government position during PiS’s eight years in power from 2015 to 2023, making him potentially less controversial than Morawiecki and other potential PiS candidates.

Morawiecki’s new post is seen by some as a consolation prize for missing out on the candidacy. If confirmed as ECR leader, the former PM will have significant influence on European politics, since ECR the fourth-largest political force in the European Parliament.

In an interview with the Italian newspaper Giornale two months ago, the 52-year-old Polish politician had already expressed his willingness to lead the ECR party.

Il Giornale reported on Thursday: “It has been no secret that Giorgia Meloni intended to step down as the president of the ECR. Equally, it has been well-known that Mateusz Morawiecki was the frontrunner to succeed her.”

The paper added that taking over the leadership of the party will allow Morawiecki to be part of the ECR delegation attending Donald Trump’s inauguration, scheduled for January 20 in Washington.

Formal procedures for electing the new president are expected to begin next week, with Morawiecki slated to assume the role as early as mid-January 2025.

Meloni’s Brothers of Italy and PiS are the two largest parties within the ECR and the consensus between these two is generally enough for a candidate to secure the presidency.

Smaller parties are generally granted vice-presidential positions to maintain balance and avoid dissatisfaction.