Da presidente per caso a presidente acchiappa-tutti: la Liguria di Toti

The Italian regional elections were postponed in September 2020 due to the spread of the pandemic, but the time extention for the electoral campaign was not enough to balance the gap between the center-left regional presidential candidate, Ferruccio Sansa, and the incumbent president, supported by the center-right, Giovanni Toti. The Ligurian case stood out for two main reasons. After the Umbrian case, it was the second local experiment of the Pd + M5s electoral coalition which proved to be unable to achieve the desired result. Moreover, Toti’s victory kiched Forza Italia out from the regional council. However, Toti’s political victory has been obtained by the strenghtenig of his personal image linked to the so-called “Ponte Morandi” effect and his management of the pandemic. Both events gave him greater visibility and credibility in comparison to any other candidate.