ROME — Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi has indicated he would present his resignation on Thursday in a brief speech to the country’s deputies, after failing to win the support of his coalition partners in a vote of confidence in parliament.
Draghi told the Lower House he would visit the president on Thursday morning to tender his resignation.
“In light of the vote expressed last night by the Senate of the Republic, I ask that this session be suspended because I am going to the president of the Republic to communicate my decisions,” Draghi said. His statement came after extended applause from some in the chamber, who rose to their feet.
Draghi expressed his gratitude to the ministers and MPs, saying: “Thanks, even central bankers have a heart,” in a reference to a recent joke he made about central bankers having unused hearts.
The prime minister lost the backing of the right-wing parties in his coalition, Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia and Matteo Salvini’s League.
His resignation will almost certainly lead to an early election this fall, which would plunge Italy into months of upheaval. The right-wing parties would be expected to win that vote and take power as part of a coalition with the opposition Brothers of Italy.
While Draghi may stay on in a caretaker role until the election, the exit of the 74-year-old former president of the European Central Bank deprives the EU of one of its most experienced leaders at a critical moment, with inflation soaring and war raging on its borders.
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