Lega Friuli-Venezia Giulia (English: "Friuli-Venezia Giulia League"), whose complete name is Lega Friuli-Venezia Giulia per Salvini Premier (English: "Friuli-Venezia Giulia League for Salvini Premier"), is a regionalist political party active in Friuli-Venezia Giulia. The party was a "national" section of Lega Nord (LN) from 1991 to 2000 and has been the regional section of Lega per Salvini Premier (LSP) in Friuli-Venezia Giulia since 2020.

Quick Facts Leader, Secretary ...
Lega Friuli-Venezia Giulia
LeaderMassimiliano Fedriga
SecretaryMarco Dreosto
Founded1990
Split fromFriuli Movement
IdeologyRegionalism
Federalism
Populism
National affiliationLega Nord (1991–2020)
Lega per Salvini Premier (2020–present)
Regional Council
13 / 48
(2023)
Chamber of Deputies (FVG seats)
3 / 8
(2022)
Senate
(FVG seats)
1 / 4
(2022)
Party flag
Thumb
Close

The party is currently led by Marco Dreosto. Its leading member is Massimiliano Fedriga, President of Friuli-Venezia Giulia since 2018

History

The party was established in 1990 as Lega Friuli by a group of leading members of the Friuli Movement, including Roberto Visentin, Pietro Fontanini, Rinaldo Bosco, Sergio Cecotti and Alessandra Guerra. After that the Friuli Movement decided not join Lega Nord, they formed Lega Friuli in order to join. Visentin was the founding and longstanding leader of the party until 1999, before leaving it altogether in 2001.

LNF members were President or Vice President of the Region (1993–2003), President of the province of Pordenone (1995–1999), President of the province of Udine (1995–1999), mayor of Pordenone (1993–2001) and mayor of Udine (1998–2003). The party was the region's largest at the 1993 regional election (26.7%) and the 1996 general election (23.2%).[1]

In 2001 Lega Nord Friuli was merged with Lega Nord Trieste to form a united regional section. At the time the party suffered many splits and a strong decline in term of votes, especially if compared to neighbouring Liga Veneta.

In the 2003 regional election Guerra was candidate for President of the House of Freedoms coalition. She was defeated by Riccardo Illy and the party gained only 9.3% of the vote. Between 2001 and 2007 Visentin, Bosco, Cecotti, Fontanini, Guerra, Giuseppe Zoppolato (national secretary from 2000 to 2003) and Marco Pottino (national secretary from 2005 to 2007) left or were ejected in party struggles. Guerra joined the Democratic Party in 2009,[2] later switched to the Federation of the Greens[3] and finally joined the left-wing, pacifist Peace Land Dignity list for the 2024 EP election.[4][5]

In 2007 Fontanini was re-integrated in the party and in 2008 he was elected President of the Province of Udine and national secretary of the LNFVG.[6] This represented a sort of return to normality for the party, which won 13.0% of the vote in the general election.[7] At the 2009 European Parliament election the party won 17.5% of the vote,[8] its best score in more than a decade. Moreover, from 2008 to 2013 the party was part of the regional government led by Renzo Tondo of The People of Freedom.

In 2012 Fontanini, who was not able to unite a party divided in too many factions (notably including those led by Claudio Violino and Enzo Bortolotti), stepped down from national secretary.[6][9] Matteo Piasente was elected in his place with the support of the 58.8% of delegates during a party congress. Fontanini, who grudgingly favoured Piasente, did not even take part to the congress,[10][11][12] but nevertheless continued to be a leading member.

In the 2013 regional election the LNFVG obtained a mere 8.3% of the vote and just three regional councillors, due to Tondo's defeat.

Soon after an expenses scandal, involving Regional Council floor leaders Danilo Narduzzi and Mara Piccin, emerged and the party looked increasingly divided among supporters of Piasente, including Violino and Narduzzi (who promptly resigned from deputy national secretary), Massimiliano Fedriga and Fontanini,[13][14] who asked Piasente to resign.[15] He actually stepped down in late June and was replaced by commissioner Gianpaolo Dozzo,[16] who strove to preserve party unity.[17]

In 2014, at a congress in Udine, Fedriga was unanimously elected national secretary, the first hailing from the Venetian-speaking Trieste in party's history.[18][19]

In 2015–2017 Cecotti and Visentin were founding members of the centr-left Pact for Autonomy. Visentin would also become president of the Autonomies and Environment Pact, a network of regionalist and green parties, and vice president of the European Free Alliance.

In the 2018 regional election Fedriga was elected President with 57.1% of the vote and the party obtained 34.9% of the vote.

In the 2023 regional election Fedriga was re-elected President with 64.2% of the vote and the combined score of the party's list and Fedriga's personal list was 36.8%.

In the 2018 regional election the party obtained its best result ever: 34.9% of the vote. The party's strongholds are Carnia (46.5%), which is part of the province of Udine (34.2%, without Carnia, which forms a separate constituency), and the province of Pordenone (36.7%).[20]

The electoral results of Lega Nord in the region are shown in the tables below.

1992 general1993 regional1994 general1996 general1998 regional1999 European2001 general2003 regional2004 European2006 general2008 general2009 European
15.326.716.923.217.310.18.29.38.57.213.017.5
2013 general2013 regional2014 European2018 general2018 regional2019 European2022 general2023 regional2024 European
6.78.39.325.834.942.611.036.8[lower-alpha 1]14.9
  1. Combined result of party list and Fedriga's personal list.

Election results

More information Election year, Votes ...
Chamber of Deputies
Election year Votes % Seats +/-
1992 137,201 (3rd) 16.78
3 / 15
Increase 3
1994 150,250 (2nd) 16.92
6 / 13
Increase 3
1996 195,616 (1st) 23.19
4 / 13
Decrease 2
2001 66,252 (5th) 8.24
2 / 13
Decrease 2
2006 58,030 (4th) 7.17
1 / 13
Decrease 1
2008 99,540 (3rd) 13.04
2 / 13
Increase 1
2013 48,310 (5th) 6.70
1 / 13
Decrease 1
2018 178,194 (1st) 25.86
4 / 13
Increase 3
2022 64,086 (3rd) 10.95
3 / 8
Decrease 1
Close
More information Election year, Votes ...
Senate of the Republic
Election year Votes % Seats +/-
1992 112,638 (3rd) 14.51
1 / 7
Increase 1
1994 with PdL
3 / 7
Increase 2
1996 180,493 (3rd) 24.13
2 / 7
Decrease 1
2001 with CdL
1 / 7
Decrease 1
2006 53,737 (5th) 7.12
1 / 7
-
2008 92,852 (3rd) 13.02
1 / 7
-
2013 46,740 (5th) 6.94
0 / 7
Decrease 1
2018 164,105 (1st) 25.49
2 / 7
Increase 2
2022 64,525 (3rd) 10.89
1 / 4
Decrease 1
Close
More information Election year, Votes ...
Regional Council
Election year Votes % Seats +/-
1993 212,423 (1st) 26.67
18 / 60
Increase 18
1998 114,186 (2nd) 17.36
12 / 60
Decrease 6
2003 46,409 (5th) 9.33
4 / 60
Decrease 8
2008 73,239 (3rd) 12.93
8 / 57
Increase 4
2013 33,047 (5th) 8.28
3 / 49
Decrease 5
2018 147,340 (1st) 34.91
17 / 49
Increase 14
2023 75,117 (1st)
70,192 (3rd)
19.02 (party list)
17.77 (Fedriga list)
18 / 49
Increase 1
Close

Leadership

References

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