Meloni was about to become Italy’s longest-serving leader. Then ‘Il Generale’ stole her right flank

In a packed auditorium in Rome on Sunday, a former Italian army general known to supporters as “Il Generale” rallied followers of his fledgling party, casting himself as an outsider reshaping Italy’s right and challenging Premier Giorgia Meloni. Roberto Vannacci‘s “National Future” party is injecting uncertainty into the conservative bloc that has underpinned Meloni’s government, exposing tensions ahead of the 2027 general election. Meloni’s party has its roots in fascism and she campaigned as an EU-skeptic, prompting analysts to speculate she would be a hard-line nationalist if elected. Instead, she has been a pragmatic conservative leader with a more moderate, pro-European approach, which also ensured a period of unusually long stability for Italy. In early September, if still in office, Meloni will become the longest-serving head of government in the 80-year history of the Italian Republic, surpassing the late Silvio Berlusconi. A rival carving out space to her right could test her ability to hold that tack, analysts say. The question is no longer whether Vannacci will influence the vote, but whether Meloni can contain, co-opt or outmaneuver her challenger. Vannacci calls his party the ‘real right’ “With us, Italy will once again be the home of Italians,” Vannacci said at his party’s founding assembly on Sunday. “Everyone must feel safe in their own home.” One day earlier, he proudly described his core lawmakers as the “dirty dozen,” stressing his outsider role. Vannacci, 57, emerged politically with his 2023 self-published book “Il mondo al contrario” (The World Upside Down), which drew controversy for harsh attacks on LGBTQ+ people, migrants and minorities. He entered politics a year later with Matteo Salvini ’s anti-migration League, winning more than 530,000 preferences in European Parliament elections. He left the League in February to launch his Futuro Nazionale, a break Salvini called a “betrayal.” Since then, Vannacci has consolidated support.