ROME, June 27 — Against this backdrop of political upheaval and shifting alliances, Italy’s combative prime minister has forged what analysts describe as the country’s most stable government in years. The story of this consolidation of power is perhaps best illustrated by a moment of personal crisis that became a display of political acumen. In October 2023, Giorgia Meloni faced a domestic crisis.
A hot mic captured her longtime partner—the father of her child and a news anchor—making sexist jokes off air. In the viral video and audio, he was heard asking female co-workers whether they minded if he touched his “package.” One female co-worker shot back that he was already touching himself.
Then, he propositioned one of them to join “a threesome, even a foursome.” The audio had all the trappings of a tabloid scandal. It was embarrassing, vulgar, and politically problematic. So Meloni did what Italians have come to expect of their fiery prime minister: She publicly dumped him.
“My relationship with Andrea Giambruno, which lasted nearly 10 years, ends here,” she wrote in a social-media post the morning after the recordings leaked. She thanked him “for giving me the most important thing in my life, which is our daughter Ginevra.” While Giambruno publicly apologized, stating his life “disintegrated overnight,” Meloni’s message was clear: Next.
The incident was classic Meloni: immediate, brutal, and emblematic of her reputation as a leader who doesn’t tolerate affronts to her dignity—and knows exactly when to push back. This political acumen was on display last week when she traded barbs with Donald Trump. After he accused her of begging him for a picture, she had one message for the American president: “Neither I nor Italy ever beg.” Bombastic politics is increasingly a norm, and Meloni is one of its most astute practitioners.
It propelled her career in a country where chauvinistic attitudes are deeply rooted. It helped her become one of Trump’s most important European allies—someone who seemed spiritually aligned in political style and who stood by the American president. In the corridors of power in Rome and Brussels, what is at stake is the wider picture of European stability.
Meloni’s ability to project strength in moments of personal and political vulnerability has, paradoxically, created a durable government. Her coalition has held together through crises that would have toppled previous administrations.
The wider picture for European observers is a leader who has mastered the politics of the moment. Whether handling a personal scandal with surgical precision or trading barbs with the American president, Meloni has shown a capacity to turn potential weaknesses into demonstrations of strength. For a country that has seen more than sixty governments since World War II, this stability—however combative in style—represents a notable departure from the norm.
