SW News: For the first time in its history, Italy has got a woman prime minister with Catholic politician and a big fan of Pope St John Paul II Giorgia Meloni’s conservative bloc getting a thumping victory in the general election. Her alliance clinched 114 seats and defeated rival contestant Mario Draghi when the results were announced on Monday, September 26. Fratelli d’Italia, the alliance led by Meloni, who is the leader of the far-right Brothers of Italy party, bagged 43 percent votes in Sunday’s election.

A staunch opponent of the LGBTQ agenda, abortion, unregulated migration, and woke culture, Meloni’s win will witness a center-right government ruling Italy. The members of her coalition include La Lega of Matteo Salvini and Forza Italia of Silvio Berlusconi. Meloni revealed that she is a Catholic and a fan of Pope St John Paul II in her autobiography entitled "Lo Sono Giorgia: Le Mie Radici Le Mie Idee", which was published last year. In her autobiography, she describes the Polish pontiff as “the greatest pope in the modern era and the greatest statesman of the 20th century".

At a time when the woke culture and rabid secularism are gnawing at the Christian roots of Europe to such an extent that public symbols of Christianity are under threat, Meloni has displayed her Catholic faith on several occasions. In fact, she describes herself as a “woman, mother, Italian and Christian”, stressing that she is over denominational separations. Meloni explains this by saying it is essential to fight the battle as a common-sense laywoman who believes in God.

She joins the ilk of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in denouncing the genocide of Christians and during the World Congress of Families in 2019, Meloni termed it the “greatest persecution in the world”. Meloni is one of the few women leaders in Europe who does not bow to political correctness and goes to any extent to call a spade a spade. When a Muslim migrant objected to having crucifixes in classrooms across Italy and it snowballed into a big debate, the leader of the Brothers of Italy party did not mince words. She rose to the occasion to defend the symbol of the redemption of mankind and the foundation of the Christian faith by saying, "If you feel offended by the crucifix or the manger, this is not where you have to live. The world is big and full of Islamic nations where you won't find a crucifix because Christians are persecuted and churches are razed to the ground.”

Pro-life supporter

Meloni is also vocal about the rights of working pregnant mothers and their right to have maternity leave and job security. The 45-year-old also believes that it is essential “for the State to encourage the natural family founded on marriage" and "to favor the birth rate with resources”.

The new Italian prime minister is also staunchly opposed to the LGBTQ ideology which is making its presence felt in the curricula in several European nations. Meloni has made her stand clear saying that she rejects a society in which every whim and fancy of people becomes a right. A big fan of the “Lord of the Rings” novel, she is also opposed to same-sex marriages and euthanasia.

World leaders react

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said his country is looking forward to working with the new government. “We are eager to work with Italy’s government on our shared goals: supporting a free and independent Ukraine, respecting human rights, and building a sustainable economic future,” he tweeted.

French President Emmanuel Macron was more toned down in his message in which he just mentioned that he respected the mandate of the Italians. On the other hand, political director to Hungarian Prime Minister Orban hailed Meloni’s victory on Twitter. “Congratulations to Giorgia Meloni, Matteo Salvini, and Silvio Berlusconi on the elections today! In these difficult times, we need more than ever friends who share a common vision and approach to Europe’s challenges.” Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki also lauded the new Italian PM and praised the far right’s great political victory.