Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi submitted his resignation to President Sergio Mattarella on Thursday, plunging the European Union’s third-largest economy into fresh political turmoil.
Draghi’s resignation comes after several key parties in his coalition — the powerful 5-Star movement, the largest party in the country’s coalition government, center-right Forza Italia and the far-right League — boycotted a confidence vote in the government Wednesday night.
Mattarella, who accepted the resignation, is scheduled to meet with the speakers of Parliament on Thursday afternoon, the presidential palace said in a statement. The next step is to call for a snap election.
Last week, Draghi first tendered his resignation after the 5-Star movement withdrew its support in a parliamentary confidence vote on a package designed to tackle Italy’s cost-of-living crisis. Draghi had previously said that he would not lead a government that did not include 5-Star.
That resignation, however, was rejected by Italy’s President Sergio Mattarella, who urged him to stay and find a solution.
On Thursday, the FTSEMIB, Italy’s main stock market, was down more than 2.5% after the country’s government was left on the brink of collapse.
