“GOD, HOMELAND AND FAMILY”: Giorgia Meloni and emotional politics as a strategy of the italian far right

Abstract

The article analyzes the rise of Giorgia Meloni as the main leader of the Italian far right, emphasizing the articulation between female protagonism and traditional conservatism, grounded in the defense of family, Christianity, and the rejection of what is interpreted as the cultural “degeneration” of globalized modernity. It examines the political transformation process that began in the 1990s, marked by party reconfiguration and the emergence of new actors employing populist strategies based on narratives and emotional appeals. Meloni’s trajectory, from the Italian Social Movement to the creation of the Brothers of Italy party, highlights the construction of a combative and communicative leadership that promotes the symbolic feminization of the party without altering its conservative foundations, reinforcing exclusionary policies and processes of democratic erosion.

KEYWORDS:
Giorgia Meloni; Far-Right; Gender; Conservatism