Francesco Rocca (born 1 September 1965) is an Italian manager and politician,

President of Lazio {{Infobox Political post , post = President , body = Lazio , insignia = Flag of Lazio.svg , insigniasize = 100px , insigniacaption = Flag of Lazio , imagesize = 165px , image = Francesco_Rocca_Meeting_ ...

since 2023.

Biography

First activities

Francesco Rocca - Presidente Croce Rossa Italiana

Rocca approached volunteering from the early years of his university studies in law: first alongside the Jesuit Refugee Service, then with Caritas, and finally with the Piccola casa della Divina Provvidenza. During his university years, he enrolled in the

Youth Front ''Youth Front'' ( es, Frente de la Juventud, FJ) was a Spanish political youth organization and far-right militant group, sometimes considered a terrorist organization. History FJ emerged as a 1978 split of Fuerza Nueva, the main neofrancoist p ...

, the youth organization of the

Italian Social Movement The Italian Social Movement ( it, Movimento Sociale Italiano, MSI) was a neo-fascist political party in Italy. A far-right party, it presented itself until the 1990s as the defender of Italian fascism's legacy, and later moved towards national ...

. In the mid-

1990s File:1990s decade montage.png, From top left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope orbits the Earth after it was launched in 1990; American F-16s and F-15s fly over burning oil fields in Operation Desert Storm, also known as the 1991 Gulf War ...

he began his commitment to the world of healthcare as a manager: from 1996 to 2004, he was president and Commissioner of the Public Institute of assistance and charity (IPAB) "Santa Maria in Aquiro", while from 2001 to 2003 President of IPAB "Asilo della Patria". In 2003, the then

president of Lazio {{Infobox Political post , post = President , body = Lazio , insignia = Flag of Lazio.svg , insigniasize = 100px , insigniacaption = Flag of Lazio , imagesize = 165px , image = Francesco_Rocca_Meeting_ ...

Francesco Storace Francesco Storace (born 25 January 1959 in Cassino, Lazio) is an Italian politician and journalist. Biography He began his career at the right-wing newspaper ''Il Secolo d'Italia'', until entering the ranks of the neo-fascist party Italian Socia ...

appointed Rocca general manager of the Sant'Andrea hospital and Extraordinary Commissioner of the Sant'Andrea. In parallel with his work as a lawyer, he continued his commitment to voluntary work through the Ethiopian NGO Hansenian's Ethiopian Welfare Organization of which, for a short time, he was also director general free of charge, and with the

Italian Red Cross The Italian Red Cross (IRC, it, Croce Rossa Italiana or ''CRI'') is the Italian national Red Cross society. The Italian Red Cross was one of the original founding members of the International Committee of the Red Cross in 1919. History Early h ...

, adhering to the component of blood donors. Since the second half of 2007, he has been called upon to hold the position of head of the Emergency Operations Department of the Red Cross. In 2009, during the General Assembly in Kenya, he was elected as a member of the Board of Directors of the

International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is a worldwide humanitarian aid organization that reaches 160 million people each year through its 192-member National Societies. It acts before, during and after disas ...

Leading the Red Cross

Rocca joined the

in June 2007, becoming extraordinary commissioner in November 2008. In the meantime, a small interlude in the municipality of

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, during the mayorship of

Gianni Alemanno Giovanni "Gianni" Alemanno (born 3 March 1958) is an Italian politician who from April 2008 until June 2013 was Mayor of Rome for the centre-right People of Freedom. He was the Secretary of the National Movement for Sovereignty from 2017 to 201 ...

, as head of the Health and Social Activities Department of the Municipality of Rome. In January 2013, he assumed the position of national president of the Red Cross. Also in 2013, during the general assembly in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, Rocca was elected vice president of the

. The office of president was renewed for the first time in May 2016, and the second time in May 2020.

President of Lazio

At the end of 2022, in the vicinity of regional elections in February 2023, the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Giorgia Meloni Giorgia Meloni (; born 15 January 1977) is an Italian politician who has been serving as the Prime Minister of Italy since 22 October 2022, the first woman to hold this position. A member of the Chamber of Deputies since 2006, she has led the ...

proposes Rocca's name as the official candidate of the

centre-right coalition The centre-right coalition ( it, coalizione di centro-destra) is an alliance of political parties in Italy, active—under several forms and names—since 1994, when Silvio Berlusconi entered politics and formed his Forza Italia party. Despite ...

for the office of

. By accepting the candidacy, Rocca leaves the leadership of the Red Cross on 29 December 2022. In the electoral round, characterized by a very low turnout, Rocca was elected governor with 54% of the votes.

Controversies

At the age of 19, Rocca was convicted of drug dealing

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and brow ...

, implicated in an investigation into a heavy drug ring run by a group of Nigerians in Casal Palocco, on whose behalf he had sold a pound and a half of drugs to a buyer: arrested in 1985, he was sentenced the following year to 38 months in prison. In 2023, Lazio planned on supporting the LGBTQ+ Pride Event in Rome but has since backed out of supporting the event saying that they did not want to be associated at promoting illegal conduct" specifically referring to issues regarding surrogacy, which is illegal in Italy.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rocca, Francesco 1965 births Living people Presidents of Lazio Politicians from Rome Italian corporate directors 21st-century Italian politicians Sapienza University of Rome alumni Presidents of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies