Disappointed Italy goes to ballot box

rome - An economic lagging Italy since the crisis is going to choose a parliament on Sunday that probably will not be able to take away the disappointment of many voters. Party leaders have promised to throw money and get out to the EU, the euro and illegal immigration. But the question is whether there will be a stable government from the colorful collection of parties and occasional coalitions that will tackle the underlying problems after the polls.

Italy has had about as many governments and elections in this century as the Netherlands, but economically the difference is large. It is one of the few Western economies that is not able to overcome the crisis and is suffering a huge debt burden.

The expected largest party will be a mutually deeply divided protest party, the Five Star Movement (M5S) by Luigi Di Maio. The largest group is expected to be the occasional coalition of, among others, the elderly center-right ex-prime minister Silvio Berlusconi and the Northern Italian right-wing populist Matteo Salvini.

Center links are led by Matteo Renzi of the party of current Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, the Democratic Party (PD). He is expected to suffer under the newly established coalition of radial left, Liberi e Uguali (Free and equal) of Pietro Grasso.

The club, which collects about 40 percent, could form a government in the new electoral system. The polling stations will open at 7 a.m. and close at 11 p.m. Three hours of results.