Gualtieri runs for a second term as Rome mayor, with M5S and Azione in the room

A campaign launch on the centre-left

Roberto Gualtieri opened his campaign for a second term as mayor of Rome at the Auditorium della Conciliazione, a bid for the 2027 municipal elections built around the slogan "Roma avanti tutti". More than 3,000 accredited guests registered for the event. Elly Schlein, the national Democratic Party secretary, sat in the front row between Claudio Mancini and Marta Bonafoni, and a long list of Democratic, Italia Viva and allied figures was on hand. Gualtieri said he had decided to run again for another five years, and he described the city as having changed him and his relationship with residents.

“Today there is a great capital of trust: Rome can change. And I say it officially: I have decided to run again to keep changing the city.”

Coalition and the M5S and Azione question

Gualtieri thanked M5S and Azione for the way they had played the opposition and for starting a shared path with the majority. Linda Meleo, the Rome coordinator of M5S, and deputy Francesco Silvestri attended with the party's Rome group, except former mayor Virginia Raggi, who was absent. For Azione, Rome secretary Alessio D'Amato and deputy Valentina Grippo were present with the city councillors. From the stage, Gualtieri set out what he wanted from the two parties.

“My goal is for the friends from M5S and Azione present here to be part of this challenge.”

Silvestri said M5S would give its answer after a discussion table with Gualtieri, and that alliances follow a shared project for the city. D'Amato had earlier told Fanpage that talks to enter the majority were under way. At the event, the two parties had not yet formally joined the coalition.

Housing, climate, transport and security

Gualtieri said Rome needs another national government to deliver a new housing plan, and he hoped Europe would give national governments tools to act when cities or regions are in difficulty. He called the right "retrograde" on climate and listed depaving and more greenery among the most important steps for the city. He also said he would ask the government for resources for public transport, which he described as shamefully abandoned. On security, he urged the government to hire more police officers rather than create new offences through decrees. Valentina Fabbri, speaking for the Rome housing agency, said that two months after its creation the agency had already helped 400 people find a home, including people who earn well but struggle to access housing. Gualtieri added that the administration had raised the tourist tax to the maximum and used the proceeds to buy public housing.

What is at stake

Il Messaggero framed the goal as winning in the first round, a result that only Walter Veltroni achieved in Rome, in 2006. The coalition would be far broader than the one that backed Gualtieri in 2021, since M5S and Azione were rivals in the last round. The article recalls that in 2014, during the Mondo di mezzo investigation, M5S councillors brought oranges to Democratic councillors, and says relations have since become much closer. Gualtieri served as economy minister in Giuseppe Conte's yellow-red government, and the two men now have cordial relations. The Democratic Party's campaign priorities, according to the mayor, are housing, greenery and public transport.