Alessio D’Amato says he is leaving Azione and plans to return to the Democratic Party, while Carlo Calenda’s response has turned that departure into a public argument over the limits of political cooperation in Rome.
In an interview with la Repubblica, D’Amato announced his break with Calenda and his intention to rejoin the PD. Later the same day, Calenda said D’Amato had an agreement with PD figure Mancini to become a Rome councillor. He also said Azione would not move to the right, that he would not accept ultimatums, and that he would not run in Rome.
The immediate significance is not that a new alliance has been formed. It is that two incompatible accounts of the relationship between Azione and Rome’s Democratic Party have moved into the open. D’Amato frames his departure as a break with Calenda’s direction and names the PD as his political destination. Calenda challenges the manner of the departure and casts it as part of a prospective City Hall appointment.
Calenda’s account of an agreement is an allegation, not an established arrangement. The supplied reporting includes no response from Mancini or the PD and provides no terms for any proposed appointment. It cannot support claims that a councillor post, joint electoral list or wider alliance has already been agreed.
That restraint is central to reading the dispute. This is not evidence of a national realignment of Italy’s political centre. It is a Rome-specific rupture that exposes a practical problem: D’Amato is moving toward the PD, while Calenda insists on independence from both a rightward turn and internal pressure. The unresolved issue is whether Azione and the PD can still set credible terms for cooperation in the capital.
Sources
- la Repubblica · Source date: 2026-11-13
- la Repubblica · Source date: 2026-11-13
Independent editorial content. WUA is not affiliated with any political party. 2026-11-13