Wide open field in Tuscany: the Five Star Movement offers glimpses of Giani's position, Conte: "We need to renew."

Florence, July 17, 2025 – "We come from an opposition to Giani's five-year term," says Giuseppe Conte from Montecitorio, before reformulating the slogan for this fall's regional elections in Tuscany . He sees "strong renewal" instead of discontinuity as a glimmer of hope for the construction of a broader framework in a region that Schlein's supporters want to transform into a testing ground for the 2027 general election. First, however, Conte reserves the right to evaluate whether these "signals will be reflected in the discussions taking place within the Democratic Party." But judging by Monday's marathon summit at the Nazareno between the outgoing governor and Schlein , the innovation sought by both the Movement and AVS will no longer be based on the profile of the presidential candidate—in exchange for the agreement in Campania on Roberto Fico's name—but rather on openness regarding the program and proposals to keep the region red.

"The Five Star Movement has never raised issues of positions," Conte recalls, "but of serious policies ." Then, whether to inaugurate the broad field in the Grand Duchy "will be decided by the territory," that is, the grassroots, but "to justify the assignment of responsibility in the new government, a strong signal of renewal is needed," the former prime minister remarks. The subtext, for the more malicious within the Democratic Party, to Conte's words is that of wanting to break with the past by aiming, for example, for the vice presidency of the council. But much, indeed, everything, for the Five Star Movement-Iv-Avs trio , will depend on the truth of the ballot box in terms of votes and percentages obtained before they can claim council positions. More will emerge in the coming days; the regional Democratic Party has been planning bilateral meetings with potential allies since Monday evening's secretariat meeting, ahead of the meeting expected on July 29th.

The goal is to arrive at the appointment with a well-prepared "practical" candidacy so it can be made official. In any case, a more "calm" and "united" secretariat between Schlein supporters and reformists , compared to the emotional dramas of last week following Giani's self-candidacy via certified email (PEC) sent to Via Forlanini. "The regional Democratic Party is moving forward united, and all political areas of the party have confirmed their support for the line shared with secretary Schlein, that is, working together with the outgoing president and the national secretariat to form a strong and broad coalition ," emphasizes regional secretary Emiliano Fossi. And Giani? He sticks to the script, satirically dodging the pressure on his re-election (“Is it frozen? With this heat, it’s a good thing”), without manually correcting that little red circle on the calendar marked October 12th as the date of the elections called by decree for mid-August.

Provided that the idea of an election day in November doesn't gain traction in Rome. In that case, "if the conference of the regions or the government were to legislate different procedures," Giani acknowledges, "it's clear we'll defer to that, but we'll continue to operate according to our plan." That is, €11.5 million allocated by the council to ensure the proper functioning of the electoral machine.