Italians cast their votes in crucial election
(25 Sep 2022) RESTRICTION SUMMARY: ASSOCIATED PRESS Rome - 25 September 2022 1. Hand pushing ballot into ballot box HEADLINE: Italians cast their votes in crucial election ASSOCIATED PRESS Mila - 25 September 2022 2. Polling station in Milan ANNOTATION: Voters in Italy were voting Sunday in an election that polls say could result in Italy's first woman prime minister. ASSOCIATED PRESS Ancona - 23 August 2022 3. Giorgia Meloni political rally ANNOTATION: The far-right Brothers of Italy party, led by Giorgia Meloni, had a strong lead in the polls going into the election. ASSOCIATED PRESS Rome - 22 September 2022 4. Center-right coalition leaders on stage at final rally in Rome ANNOTATION: Meloni has formed a center-right alliance with former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia's party and Matteo Salvini's League party. 5. Final rally of center-right coalition ANNOTATION: The result could give Italy its first far-right government since World War II, led by a party with neo-fascist roots. ASSOCIATED PRESS Ancona - 23 August 2022 6. Brothers of Italy rally in Ancona ANNOTATION: Meloni has used the campaign stump to blast Europe while singing the praises of God, country, and family. ASSOCIATED PRESS Rome - 22 September 2022 7. SOUNDBITE (Italian) Giorgia Meloni, Leader of Brothers of Italy party: "Those who dream of a proud Italy are not afraid. Those who want to be proud once more of their nation, of its people, of its flag." ASSOCIATED PRESS Rome - 25 September 2022 8. Center-left leader Enrico Letta outside polling station ANNOTATION: The leader of Italy's center left, Enrico Letta, had difficulty pulling together a coalition. 9. Letta waving as he enters polling station ANNOTATION: Letta was, nevertheless, optimistic as he went to vote Sunday. 10. Ballots on table at polling station in Rome ASSOCIATED PRESS Milan - 25 September 2022 11. Former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and his companion at polling station in Milan ANNOTATION: Berlusconi, the 86-year-old three-time prime minister, was joined by his companion as he voted at a polling station in Milan. 12. Matteo Salvini casting his ballot at polling station in Milan ANNOTATION: Salvini, known for his tough anti-migrant stance when he served as interior minister, grinned from ear to ear as he voted. 13. Woman sorting ballots 14. Close of ballots ANNOTATION: Polls close at 11 p.m. local time, with projections and partial results expected early Monday morning. STORYLINE: Italians voted Sunday in an election that could move the country’s politics sharply toward the right during a critical time for Europe, with war in Ukraine fueling skyrocketing energy bills and testing the West's resolve to stand united against Russian aggression. Polls opened at 7 a.m. (0500GMT) and by noon turnout was equal to or slightly less than at the same time during Italy's last general election in 2018. The counting of paper ballots was expected to begin shortly after they close at 11 p.m. (2100 GMT), with projections based on partial results coming early Monday morning. Publication of opinion polls is banned in the two weeks leading up to the election, but polls before that showed far-right leader Giorgia Meloni and her Brothers of Italy party, with its neo-fascist roots, the most popular. That suggested Italians were poised to vote their first far-right government into power since World War II. Close behind was former Premier Enrico Letta and his center-left Democratic Party. “Today you can help write history,” Meloni tweeted Sunday morning. =========================================================== Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: / ap_archive Facebook: / aparchives Instagram: / apnews You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...
