Sangiuliano and Boccia to run in Campania regional elections.
Gennaro Sangiuliano, the former Italian culture minister, has confirmed his intention to run as a councillor in the regional elections in Campania next month.
The former minister, who had been widely tipped to enter the race in the southern Italian region around Naples, confirmed the move in an interview with Corriere della Sera published on Wednesday.
Sangiuliano, a Neapolitan, resigned as minister last year following a high-profile scandal involving his relationship with his former advisor, Maria Rosaria Boccia.
In a twist of fate, the two are now running in the same regional elections, which are scheduled to be held in Campania on 23-24 November.
Sangiuliano, 63, will stand for the right-wing Fratelli d’Italia party of premier Giorgia Meloni, while Boccia, 42, will run on an electoral list led by the controversial, right-wing Terni mayor Stefano Bandecchi.
After resigning last September in the wake of the scandal, Sangiuliano resumed work as a journalist with state broadcaster RAI, operating as Paris correspondent since April of this year.
Scandal
The controversy concerned the fact that during his tenure as minister, Boccia had frequently travelled with Sangiuliano and had access to several internal documents within the ministry
Sangiuliano resigned after weeks of rumours about the relationship between the two, fuelled by Boccia herself, and after an investigation was launched against him for embezzlement and disclosure of official secrets, which was subsequently dismissed.
Last month, the Rome Public Prosecutor’s Office requested a trial for Boccia following a year-long investigation after a complaint filed by Sangiuliano.
Boccia could face a series of charges including aggravated stalking, personal injury, defamation and using false information in her CV, LaPresse reports.
Prosecutors allege that she engaged in “repetitive, obsessive and constantly controlling” behaviour towards Sangiuliano, both in his private life and in the workplace.
Election
Asked why he is seeking public office in Campania, Sangiuliano told Corriere della Sera: “I’d like to resume a conversation with my fellow citizens. I’m Neapolitan, born in the historic centre, in the San Lorenzo neighborhood. I attended all my schooling, university and got my doctorate in law here.”
As to whether he is “worried” about facing Boccia during the election race, Sangiuliano replied: “I’m not saying anything. I have great faith in the Italian judiciary. We’ll just have to wait for justice to take its course.”
