Berlusconi loses key city votes

Mr Berlusconi called the Milan election a referendum on his leadership

Italians are due to vote for the second and final day in local election run-offs seen as a major test for embattled Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

The key battlegrounds are Mr Berlusconi’s home city of Milan and also Naples, where the centre-right ruling coalition risks losing power.

The polls are being held in cities where no candidate won 50% of the vote in the first round on 15-16 May.

Overall, Mr Berlusconi’s coalition fared badly in the first round.

The polls are due to open again at 0500 GMT and will finally close at 1300 GMT.

Some six million voters are eligible to cast their ballots. Results are expected within hours of voting ending.

The elections are the first big test Mr Berlusconi has faced since the start of his trial on charges of abuse of power and having had sex with an underage prostitute, the BBC’s Mark Duff in Milan reports.

Our correspondent adds that the battle for control of Milan has been a no-holds-barred affair.

Incumbent mayor of Milan Letizia Moratti trailed her rival after the first round

Mr Berlusconi’s ally, the incumbent Mayor Letizia Moratti, was left trailing with 41.6% of the vote behind the centre-left Giuliano Pisapia, who won 48% in the first round.

The prime minister is understood to have taken the defeat in Milan very badly.

He said previously that to lose there was “unthinkable” and called the city election a referendum on his leadership.

Mr Berlusconi also warned that Milan would be turned into “Gypsytown” if his candidate for mayor was defeated.

Ms Moratti’s defeat angered Mr Berlusconi’s coalition partners, the anti-immigration Northern League, who also did badly in the first round.

In Naples, the centre-right, led by Gianni Lettieri, is seen as the favourite to win, although some analysts say the centre-left candidate Luigi de Magistris could still benefit from votes transferred from the other challenger in the first round.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.