Italy PM Giorgia Meloni ranked 'most influential person' in Europe

Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has been ranked as the "most powerful person" in Europe by Politico in its annual ranking of the "most influential people" in Europe.

The list comprises 28 personalities who are most likely to shape European politics and policies in the coming year. The ones who usually figure at the top of the list are the German chancellor or the French president. But not this year. Europe’s traditional power players have been replaced by new ones, especially those from the far right.

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List divided into 3 categories

The list of 28 persons is divided into three categories: Doers (those most able to impose their will), Disrupters (those shaking up the existing power equations), and Dreamers (those whose bold ideas are shaping the future).

There are four persons from Poland who have made it to the list, underlining the importance of the country that shares a border with Ukraine and Russia’s ally Belarus. Poland under its Prime Minister Donald Tusk has been a strong supporter of Ukraine.

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The list also contains several right-wing and ultranationalist figures, capturing the continent’s trend away from the centre and more towards populism.

Meloni, the leader of the right-wing Brothers of Italy party, and Italy’s first female Prime Minister, has established herself as a person to be contended with in European politics.

Meloni – the alpha figure

Meloni started off as an activist in the youth wing of the neo-fascist Italian Social Movement. She even praised former Italian dictator Benito Mussolini as “a good politician who did everything he did for the good of Italy”.

She has been part of the shift in European politics towards the far right.

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When she became the prime minister in 2022, few people expected her government to last given the infighting in her coalition of right-wing parties. But she has proved the naysayers wrong and over the past two years has made her government one of the most stable ones in post-war Italy.

Meloni has a no-nonsense approach and is not one to back off from a fight.

Democratic backsliding

The Italian prime minister uses the judicial system to try to silence her critics, and files defamation suits against those who call her “fascist” or “neo-Nazi”. She has used strongarm methods to deal with newspapers and journalists at the country’s state broadcaster who went on a strike to protest government censorship. She has reportedly targeted judges who have ruled against some of her government’s policies.

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Her government has targeted minority groups like the LGBTQ+ community, whom she refers to as a “lobby”. Meloni’s government has forbidden mayors from issuing birth certificates to children born of surrogate mothers or to lesbian couples who used artificial insemination. Surveys show that there has been a marked increase in anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes since she became prime minister.

Accepted among Europe’s leaders

The European Union leaders have however treated all this as an internal matter and have accepted her as a trusted partner who will support them on the important issues.

Meloni has become one of Ukraine’s strongest supporters, and even used her influence in February to convince Hungary to support a 50-billion-euro aid package for Ukraine.

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Meloni has dealt strongly with the migration crisis, partnering with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to strike deals with Tunisia, Mauritania, and Egypt to take measures to keep migrants away from Europe.

Europe’s “most powerful person” has positioned herself as a bridge between the far-right and the liberal democratic centre, and is set to cement her position as one of the central figures in Europe’s politics.