Schlein applauds him, Taranto welcomes him: but the third mandate hypothesis pushes Decaro towards a step back

It is a moment of exposure and tension for the Apulian center-left. Over the weekend Elly Schlein closed the electoral campaign in Taranto in support of the mayoral candidate Piero Bitetti , flanked by the MEP Antonio Decaro , welcomed by the square as the natural future candidate for the Regionals. But behind the handshakes, as reported by the Corriere della Sera , the temptation to step back is growing.

The former mayor of Bari is considered the only one capable of holding the center-left together, but according to rumors in the party, his willingness to run decreases with each passing day . The reasons? Many, and not all of them linked to the merit of the candidacy.

Decaro's doubts: from Brussels to local discontent

On the one hand, there is the weighty role that Decaro plays in Brussels , where he chairs the Environment Committee of the European Parliament. No longer an “elephant graveyard”, as it was once called, but a focal point for strategic decisions. On the other, there are the political difficulties in regional management , such as irritation over the Council's inertia on two key issues: the cancellation of the rule that obliges mayors to resign six months before running for office and the abolition of the so-called Laricchia rule on appointments.

The Corriere reveals that Decaro would have also asked Michele Emiliano to freeze the appointments in the ASL and the Apulian Aqueduct, but the governor seems intent on going ahead. Emiliano himself would have promised involvement and sharing, but Decaro would have preferred a blank semester to avoid rifts. Weighing even more is the hypothesis that Emiliano and Vendola enter the Regional Council, two former governors that Decaro would consider too cumbersome figures to support.

The wild card: the third term

In this already complicated context, the possible approval of the third mandate for the presidents of the Region fits in, a hypothesis that until a few weeks ago seemed to have disappeared, but which is now back on the table for reasons of political balance in the center-right majority . As reported by Corriere della Sera , Fratelli d'Italia , which had challenged the Campania law, is now open to a third mandate also to avoid tensions with the League, interested in confirming Luca Zaia in Veneto.

Vincenzo De Luca himself, president of Campania, seems to have changed his attitude toward Giorgia Meloni, speaking of a “proof of political intelligence” and hypothesizing that the law could be approved very quickly, even with a decree law before the summer. A political about-face that, if confirmed, could have devastating effects also for the center-left in Puglia.

In fact, if the government were to really open up to a third term, Emiliano's return to the field would become a concrete scenario . The governor of Puglia has always declared that he wanted to stop, but in changed conditions everything could reopen. And with him in the field, Decaro could decide to step aside definitively.

The Democratic Party between nervousness and silence

Meanwhile, there is growing nervousness in the Democratic Party, as demonstrated by the position of former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi , who harshly attacked Prime Minister Meloni for her “intermittent coherence” on the third term, accusing her of only wanting to create confusion in the center-left and save the balance of her majority. Even Elly Schlein , who spoke on the phone with De Luca in recent days, will now have to evaluate whether to focus on unity or on a new beginning.

Meanwhile, this afternoon, De Luca, Schlein, Giuseppe Conte, Angelo Bonelli and Nicola Fratoianni will meet side by side in Rome for a demonstration. But the political understanding between them remains fragile, and the possible return of the third mandate risks blowing up alliances and electoral plans .

In the center-left camp, therefore, nothing is decided yet . And what seemed like a race already written, with Decaro in pole position for the leadership of Puglia, risks quickly becoming a game to be started all over again .

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