Italian politics has been in trouble for decades. Now it’s heading for a new low | Jamie Mackay

If Giorgia Meloni comes to power at the head of a far-right coalition, the economic and social outcomes could be terrible

Earlier this month, Alessio Di Giulio, a Florentine councillor with rightwing populist party the League, posted a 17-second video that, to my mind, marks the nadir of what has been one of the most grotesque Italian election campaigns in recent memory. In the clip, Di Giulio strolls through the historic centre of the Tuscan capital when he comes across a woman who appears to be of Roma origin. Stopping in his tracks, the candidate leans into the camera and implores his audience to vote the League to never see her again", a phrase he repeats three times for rhetorical effect.

Most Italians were appalled, and the video went viral. Which was, of course, Di Giulio's hope all along. You can see it from the smile on his face. He was surely aware, when he uploaded his clip, that there was no chance of voters in his left-leaning constituency shifting their support. His gesture was purely performative, a tacit reminder to political sympathisers across the nation that if Giorgia Meloni's Brothers of Italy wins this week's election, as expected, people like him will soon have an opportunity to shape the policy agenda.

Jamie Mackay is a writer and translator based in Florence