euronews
Giorgio Napolitano was the only re-elected President in the history of the Italian Republic, sworn in a second time on 22nd April, 2013 (the first had been in 2006). After five rounds of voting, the Parliament had still not mustered a consensus on a candidate. Napolitano agreed to stand as a compromise, feeling a duty to his nation, he said.
President Giorgio Napolitano, who was Italy’s king-maker and its longest serving head of state, is set to resign on Wednesday in a development that will spell yet more political uncertainty for a fragile coalition government struggling to put the country’s moribund economy back on course.
The significance of Mr Napolitano’s departure can be measured by the fact that he has appointed the past three premiers and that the 89-year-old head of state was widely credited with behind-the-scenes manoeuvres that finally removed Silvio Berlusconi from power, at the height of the sovereign debt crisis in 2011.