Italian populist and far-right parties have their eye on making major gains in Sunday’s election, spooking investors and European capitals after a campaign dominated by fears about immigration and the economy.
Rival parties held their final rallies on Friday as no campaigning was allowed on Saturday, at the end of a bitter race marred by clashes between far-right and anti-fascist activists.
The result could end up in a draw between the anti-establishment Five Star Movement, three-time prime minister Silvio Berlusconi’s right-wing coalition and the ruling centre-left Democratic Party.
Many Italians are cynical about promises made by squabbling politicians and confused, also because a new electoral law makes the outcome hard to predict and increases the chances of a stalemate.