The Republic's longest-serving government opens the week with a rail strike

On September 4, 2026, the government led by Giorgia Meloni surpassed the 1,412 days of the second Berlusconi government, becoming the longest-serving in the history of the Italian Republic. The count comes from an analysis by Sky TG24 on the duration of Italian governments; the reconstruction of September’s political agenda, on the other hand, comes from Il Messaggero, which reports on a roadmap by the President of the Council and on work by Fratelli d’Italia on electoral lists. These are two distinct sources, with different scopes: the first is a calendar fact, the second a journalistic reconstruction.

On substance, the two issues indicated by the Italian press as dominant this month are electoral law and the budget bill. The premier is attributed with the formula “Electoral law against last-minute reshuffles. I won’t back down.” It should be read for what it is: a political stance, not a legislative text. In the materials available there is no detailed proposal, no parliamentary filing, no scheduled date. The same applies to the budget bill: the dossier records the topic as being on the agenda, not figures or balances.

Political activity over the past forty-eight hours has taken place outside the institutional buildings: on September 5 the President of the Council held a rally in Bari, the following day she traveled to Policoro, in Basilicata, an area hit by a tornado.

A record for longevity is an arithmetic fact; what is done with the remaining days is another kind of accounting.

From tonight, the trains. The week opens with a national strike affecting mobility. Some independent trade unions have called a strike by staff of the Ferrovie dello Stato italiane group from 9:18 PM on Monday, September 7, to 9 PM on Tuesday, September 8. Available notices warn that cancellations and delays may occur even before the strike begins and continue after it ends. For regional transport, weekday guaranteed service bands apply: on Tuesday, September 8, essential services are ensured from 6 to 9 AM and from 6 to 9 PM.

On this story, the limitation must be stated: it currently comes from a single source (the strike call by independent unions within the FS group, reported in Today.it’s Start roundup); no independent confirmation is available. We do not have the list of signatory unions, we do not have the list of guaranteed long-distance trains, we do not have company statements on the percentage of services expected to run.

What we don’t know. We don’t know if and when the electoral reform referenced by the President of the Council will take the form of a text. We don’t know which chapters of the budget bill are already finalized. We don’t know, on the transport front, what the actual turnout for the strike will be: this is a figure known only after the fact, which we will publish only if communicated by the company or the unions.

The coincidence between the longevity record and the first day of school — the Italian school year resumes today, with staggered regional calendars — carries no political significance, and we do not intend to attribute any. It does, however, have a measurable practical effect: Tuesday’s rail stoppage falls on the day when, in most regions, students are already returning to classrooms, and the regional guaranteed-service bands cover the morning hours between 6 and 9.

Sources: Sky TG24; Il Messaggero; Today.it.