More ample coalitions on both the center right and the center left would give each a considerable boost, compared to the leading parties in the two groups standing alone in next April's early election, a new poll says.
Carried out over the weekend by the IPR research group on a cross section of 1,000 voters, the study found that the center right maintained a strong lead over the center left in all scenarios examined.
According to the poll, the center left Democratic Party (DP) of Rome Mayor Walter Veltroni would gain a greater consensus if allied with the Italy of Values (IDV) party of ex-Clean Hands prosecutor Antonio Di Pietro with the DP winning 30% of the vote while the IDV would add an additional 4% to the ticket.
Were the PD to stand alone, the poll found, it would only get 29% of the vote while the IDV would pick up no more than 3.5% and thus fail to reach the 4% needed by parties outside coalitions to win seats in Parliament.
On the center right, the new People of Freedom Party (PDL), the merger between ex-premier Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia party and the right-wing National Alliance of Gianfranco Fini, has the support of 37% of the electorate, slightly less than what the parties had on their own before.
However, if the PDL entered into a coalition with the centrist Catholic UDC party of Pier Ferdinando Casini, the center right would get an additional 4.5% and capture 41.5% of the vote.
In the event the UDC became part of the PDL, the single party would get less than the coalition, about 40%.
Should the UDC decide to stand alone, it would get 6% and reduce the PDL's lead over the DP considerably, although it would remain at some 8%.
According to IPR, were the UDC to go alone, it would also give a boost to the new centrist 'white rose' party which would achieve the 4% threshold needed to enter parliament outside of a coalition.
With the UDC part of or in a coalition with the PDL the 'white rose' would only get 2.5% of the vote and find itself outside parliament.
According to IPR, the new Left-Rainbow coalition of leftists and greens would pickup 8% of the vote.
In its poll, IPR also found that among those who intend to vote for the center left, 2% were undecided which party would get their vote, while on the center right this percentage rose to 3% .
