A rogue general's rise finds an echo in Italy's emptying regions

The Guardian's editorial board this week delivered a stark verdict on the rise of Roberto Vannacci's National Future party, warning that its early success 'sends an ominous signal as extreme politics become normalised' in Italy. The paper's commentary traces the party's trajectory back to 2023, when Vannacci, then a serving Italian general, published a far-right tract titled The World Turned Upside Down, prompting a disciplinary inquiry.

For a region like Molise, the rise of a figure such as Vannacci is not an abstract national story. The Guardian's framing describes a general who has tapped into a current of discontent that runs deep in Italy's interior, where depopulation has hollowed out communities and left voters feeling abandoned by Rome and Brussels alike.

The editorial's language is pointed: it describes Vannacci as a 'rogue general' whose political ascent has been fuelled by the same resentments that have reshaped European politics. The Guardian argues that his success reflects a broader pattern of extreme politics shedding its stigma.