The 2021 Five Star Movement leadership election was an Italian online

primary election Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the ...

held on 6 August 2021 that determined the president of the M5S. The election was ''de facto'' a

plebiscite A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

in which party's members were asked to approve or reject the candidacy of former prime minister

Giuseppe Conte Giuseppe Conte (; born 8 August 1964) is an Italian jurist, academic, and politician who served as Prime Minister of Italy, prime minister of Italy from June 2018 to February 2021. He has been the president of the Five Star Movement (M5S) sin ...

as new leader. Conte easily won the election with 92.8% of votes.

Background

In February 2021, Prime Minister

was forced to resign, after losing the absolute majority in the Senate of the Republic. On 28 February 2021, after a few days from the end of his premiership, Conte joined the

Five Star Movement The Five Star Movement ( it, Movimento 5 Stelle , M5S) is a political party in Italy. Its leader and president is Giuseppe Conte, Prime Minister of Italy from 2018 until 2021. The M5S was founded on 4 October 2009 by Beppe Grillo, a comedian an ...

(M5S), the party which proposed his candidacy as Prime Minister in June 2018. After a few days, the founder and so-called Guarantor of the M5S,

Beppe Grillo Giuseppe Piero "Beppe" Grillo (; born 21 July 1948) is an Italian comedian, actor, blogger, and politician. He has been involved in politics since 2009 as the co-founder (together with Gianroberto Casaleggio) of the Italian Five Star Movement ...

, gave Conte the task of writing a new party's statute and announced that Conte would become the new political leader. In the following months, however, tensions grown up between the two politicians. In June, Grillo accused Conte of aiming at create a one-man party and of being "without a political vision". The former Prime Minister threatened to found his own political movement, stating that Grillo "can not stop this useful political project". In July 2021, Conte and Grillo found a compromise on the new statute and leadership elections were called on 6 August.M5s, accordo fra Conte e Grillo su statuto: "Leadership chiara è garanzia di democrazia"
''Sky Tg24''

Candidates

Results

Leadership

Statute

References

{{reflist 2021 elections in Italy Political party leadership elections in Italy Five Star Movement Five Star Movement leadership election Giuseppe Conte