Giorgia Meloni

Biography

Giorgia Meloni was born on January 15, 1977, in Rome, Italy. She got involved in politics early, joining the Youth Front in 1992, the youth wing of the Italian Social Movement (MSI), a neo-fascist political party founded in 1946. Her early political activities shaped her views within Italy's right-wing scene. She moved up through various youth groups, eventually leading Student Action, the student movement of the National Alliance (AN), which was the legal successor to MSI in 1995 and leaned toward national conservatism.

Meloni's political career grew steadily through local and national roles. She served as a councillor of the province of Rome from 1998 to 2002, showing her dedication to public service at the regional level. In 2002, she became president of Youth Action, the youth wing of the National Alliance. Her skills were recognized when she was appointed Minister for Youth Policies in Silvio Berlusconi's fourth government in 2008, serving until 2011. This role gave her executive experience and national visibility.

In 2012, Meloni co-founded Brothers of Italy (Fratelli d'Italia, FdI) as a legal successor to the National Alliance, becoming its president in 2014. She was also president of the European Conservatives and Reformists Party from 2020 to 2025, expanding her influence beyond Italy. Although she faced setbacks in the 2014 European Parliament election and the 2016 Rome municipal election, her perseverance in opposition politics was strategic. Following the 2018 general election, she led FdI as the sole opposition party during the entire 18th legislature, including during the COVID-19 pandemic under the Draghi Cabinet.

Meloni's political beliefs focus on conservative Catholic values, summed up in her motto 'Dio, patria, famiglia' (God, fatherland, family). She opposes euthanasia, same-sex marriage, and same-sex parenting, promoting traditional families with male-female pairs. Her consistent opposition during national unity governments helped FdI gain significantly in opinion polls. This strategy led to her win in the 2022 general election, resulting in her becoming Prime Minister of Italy in October 2022, making her the first woman to hold this office and the leader of what became the third-longest government in modern Italian history.