Centre-right holds Arezzo and Macerata, centre-left takes Agrigento as Italian runoffs see turnout plunge

Turnout collapses in the second round

Final turnout for the runoffs reached 52.07%, a drop of 8.41 percentage points from the 60.48% recorded in the same municipalities during the first round. The decline was particularly sharp in Agrigento, where only 41.03% of eligible voters cast a ballot, down 18.16 points from the first round's 59.19%. Across the 42 municipalities above 15,000 inhabitants holding runoffs, the pattern of disengagement was consistent.

Centre-right confirms in Tuscany and the Marche

In Arezzo, Marcello Comanducci of the centre-right was elected mayor with 56.13% of the vote, according to initial projections. His centre-left opponent Vincenzo Ceccarelli, who trailed by 11.45 points after the first round, failed to close the gap. The task was made harder when civic candidate Marco Donati, who had taken over 20% in the first round with support from Azione, declined to endorse either candidate for the runoff.

In Macerata, the incumbent centre-right mayor Sandro Parcaroli secured re-election with 54.5%. Parcaroli had narrowly missed outright victory in the first round, falling short by just 10 votes at 49.96%. He faced centre-left challenger Gianluca Tittarelli.

Centre-left prevails in Sicily

Agrigento swung to the centre-left, with Michele Sodano of the broad progressive camp elected mayor. Sodano had led the first round with 39.1% of preferences. His opponent, Dino Alonge, backed by Forza Italia, Fratelli d'Italia, the UDC and autonomist lists, had taken 34.7% in the first round. Supporters gathered at Sodano's campaign headquarters as the result became clear.

Lecco and other capitals still in play

A tight contest was unfolding in Lecco, where the outgoing centre-left mayor Mauro Gattinoni faced centre-right candidate Filippo Boscagli, who had led after the first round. In Chieti, former CSM vice-president Giovanni Legnini of the centre-left was challenging Cristiano Sicari, who united the majority forces behind him for the runoff after the centre-right had split in the first round. Sicari reached an agreement with the lists that had backed Mario Colantonio, including the League, as well as centrist lists. In Trani, governed for two terms by Democratic Party mayor Amedeo Bottaro, the contest pitted Marco Galiano, supported in the first round by the PD but not the Five Star Movement, against centre-right candidate Angelo Guarriello, who trailed with 30.3%.

Sardinia bucks the turnout trend

While mainland runoffs saw declining participation, the first round of municipal elections in Sardinia moved in the opposite direction. Turnout across the island's 148 voting municipalities reached 61.64%, up 2.04 points from the 59.60% recorded in the previous elections. The Metropolitan City of Cagliari rose to 56.35% from 53.33%, Medio Campidano climbed to 61.49% from 53.2%, and Nuoro reached 69.87%. The Sulcis Iglesiente area posted the highest figure at 70.74%. In Quartu Sant'Elena, however, voters were slightly down at 48.29% compared to 49.76% previously.