Who is Occhiuto, long-time politician who wins an encore in Calabria

A long-standing politician from Cosenza, Roberto Occhiuto has gained an encore after being elected president of the Calabria Region in October 2021, with 54.6% of the vote. These regionals took place a year ahead of the natural expiry date, precisely because of his decision in July to resign - running for office at the same time - to avoid attrition, after learning that he was being investigated for corruption by the Catanzaro public prosecutor's office. An investigation concerning the management of some agricultural companies in which Occhiuto was a partner.

During the election campaign, Occhiuto claimed the activity carried out in these four years, summarised in the slogan 'more in four years than in 40'. And he remarked, among other things, that he had unblocked projects that had been at a standstill for 20 years for the construction of new hospitals, that he had committed himself to working on three Calabrian airports 'obtaining a historical record of arrivals'. And he announced, if he is re-elected, 'the merit income': 500 euro per month to young people who choose Calabrian universities and obtain at least 27 in their exams.

Born in Cosenza on 13 May 1969, he holds a degree in Economics from the University of Calabria, is a freelance journalist, an entrepreneur in the wine and publishing sectors, and was general manager of the Media TV group of Calabrian television broadcasters, which brought together a number of Calabrian television stations such as Ten, Rete Alfa and Telestars, creating a television network. He began his political activity in 1993 when he became a municipal councillor in Cosenza with the Christian Democrat party. In 1994, with the dissolution of the DC, he joined Mino Martinazzoli's Ppi and the following year he followed Rocco Buttiglione, secretary of the Ppi, and the wing of the party favourable to the alliance with Forza Italia of Silvio Berlusconi in the birth of the Cdu.

In 2000, he left the Cdu and joined Fi, with which he was elected to the regional council the same year with 8,588 preferences, making him the party's youngest regional councillor. In 2002, due to disagreements with the local Forza Italia leaders, he joined Pier Ferdinando Casini's Ccd, which then merged with the Udc, with which he was re-elected as regional councillor at the 2005 regional elections, holding the position of vice-president of the Council.

In 2008 the leap into Parliament with his election in the Udc lists and, since 2014, with Forza Italia. After being deputy vice president of the Azzurro group in Montecitorio, from 2021 he held the role of group leader - since February 2024 he has also been deputy secretary of the party - until he was elected president of the Calabria Region.