An Italian city vote in Vigevano has exposed divisions on the right after a League mayoral candidate included two Muslim candidates on his council list.
Vigevano, a northern industrial city of 62,000 people, has a foreign population of about 15%, including many residents from Egypt and Romania.
League candidate Riccardo Ghia said he wanted to win over voters from immigrant communities. The party’s national leadership later distanced itself from the candidates.
Italian-Egyptian candidate Hagar Haggag said she received insults and threats after her candidacy became public. She linked much of the abuse to her headscarf.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy backed the candidates, while Forza Italia supported another mayoral list.
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Former general Roberto Vannacci’s Futuro Nazionale-backed lawyer, Furio Suvilla, called for closing the local Muslim prayer hall.
