Italian left-wing populists break off ties with their comedian co-founder

Italy’s 5-Star Movement severed ties with its co-founder, comedian Beppe Grillo, on November 24, a new step in the transformation of the once-radical protest movement into a more mainstream left-wing force.

Representatives of the 5 Star Movement also voted against a proposal to ban alliances with other parties, Reuters reported. This step could help improve relations with the main opposition Democratic Party and ultimately create a greater electoral challenge for the right-wing coalition of Prime Minister Georgia Meloni.

Grillo, who helped found the party in 2009, has so far maintained a role as a guarantor of its core values and held the formal position of communications adviser with an annual contract worth 300,000 euros.

However, at the end of the two-day congress, party members voted 63% to 29% to abolish Grillo’s role as guarantor of values in a decision to reform the party’s charter.

Party leader and former prime minister Giuseppe Conte has clashed with Grillo on several occasions since he took over the 5-Star Movement in 2021. Grillo did not attend the party meeting. 

Grillo, known for his outspoken statements, has in the past accused Conte of lacking political vision and criticized his attempts to turn the once dissident party into a traditional leader-centered political force.

Founded in 2009, the party shook up Italian politics over the next decade, winning 25% of the vote in 2013 and entering the government five years later.

In recent years, the 5-Star Movement has lost ground due to internal political disagreements. In the European Parliament elections in June 2022, the party won 10.5% of the vote, a seven points fall compared to 2019 election.