The negotiation between Elly Schlein and Stefano Bonaccini will go on (at least) until Monday. The two continue to invoke unity but there is still no agreement on the names of the future Pd group leaders of the Chamber and Senate and on the members of the secretariat. The dem leader is determined to carry forward the candidacies of Chiara Braga for Montecitorio and Francesco Boccia for Palazzo Madama and, despite the “warnings” coming from the Bonaccinian front and the “risk matters” materialized by some hawks, the variable dem geometries deliver them encouraging numbers.
As reported by LaPresse, Saturday marked the side step of a large group of parliamentarians, former Latvians and non-Lettians, today “neo Ulivisti”, who decide to get off the barricades. Those who hold the abacus of the dem groups number about twenty deputies and senators. Among them are Marco Meloni, Anna Ascani, Enrico Borghi, Matteo Mauri, Ilenia Malavasi, Lorenzo Basso, Beatrice Lorenzin, Annamaria Furlan and Antonio Nicita. The deputy elected abroad Toni Ricciardi and Nicola Irto, regional secretary of the Democratic Party in Calabria, first among the “hawks” of the reformist Base, would also be ready to converge. After a dinner a couple of days ago in which – they say – there was no lack of heated tones against the secretary, the group, despite having supported Bonaccini in the primaries, decided not to participate in the meeting convened by the dem president in view of the joint assembly of Monday.
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«The climate of these days has been marked by openly conflicting statements that threatened internal disputes and fractures that cannot be shared at all – explain the new olive makers – For this reason, we decided not to participate in Saturday’s meeting because it was essential for us to give a clear signal to avoid a return to the dynamics of litigation and confrontation that have done so much harm to the Democratic Party ». Mediating with the parliamentarians, explaining the political path that he intends to implement also through the new party structures, would have been Schlein himself. “Elly personally called the deputies and senators and his phone calls made inroads – it is explained – not only among the Latvians”. The shift has its weight: “In the Senate we are almost 30 out of 37 and in the Chamber, with them, there is now a very large margin” is the photograph that is taken by the parliamentarians close to Schlein. “The weapon of counting has now dawned – is the refrain – they risk turning on the light and finding themselves in a few”. Bonaccini, in any case, does not give up. The governor of Emilia Romagna brings his followers together and calls the secretary to responsibility: “It would be absolutely desirable that the next steps also take place in a climate of unity and collaboration”, begins the dem president, reiterating the “I don’t feel a minority” punctuated in assembly and the willingness to “lend a hand” to strengthen the Democratic Party “also by sharing responsibilities. It depends on us but obviously – it is underlined – it depends at least as much on the Secretary». The governor of Emilia Romagna says he advised Elly to be “cautious” about group leaders. «Not because I believe it’s up to me to give report cards on the names but because I think that a positive relationship should be built with the parliamentary groups: on the one hand respectful of the line issued at the congress but at the same time respectful of the autonomy of the groups and of the orientations that I am,” he explains.
For Bonaccini, building a “harmony” is not difficult, the important thing however, he underlines, is to take “the right steps” and “not drop closed and indisputable proposals from above”. Bonaccini admits that he has “recorded the bad moods” of the last few hours and that he has represented them to the secretary. “We spoke again even in these hours and I reiterated both what I think is what I recorded: there are the conditions to do well and together if you have the patience to listen to each other and the will to share”, he insists with his saying available for a new comparison in the next few hours to get a more complete picture. Bonaccini will leave in a few days for a mission to Texas that has been set for months but asks his men for a mandate to continue the negotiations, giving Schlein a deadline: the overall proposal regarding the party’s structures must be clear on Monday. Even among the reformist Base parliamentarians the “counts” weapon is practically placed away: “If it can be avoided, it would be better at this point, however it depends on where we get to”. If, however, the confrontation on the structure of the groups and the party does not lead to concrete mediation results, the area could remain outside the secretariat. “And this – is the warning – does not suit anyone”.