Italy is on track for its most right-wing government since the Second World War as Giorgia Meloni’s arch-conservative party tops preliminary results from Sunday’s general election.
Ms Meloni, a 45-year-old Roman who has led Fratelli d’Italia (Brothers of Italy) on the margins of Italy’s politics for a decade, stormed to prominence in a snap election called after Mario Draghi’s coalition collapsed over the summer.
The outsider candidate is thought to have benefited from being the only major party leader who refused to join the government of national unity established under Mr Draghi last year.
