[:it]EUROPEAN ELECTIONS, 89 CANDIDATES HAVE JOINED THE COME-OUT PLATFORM. THE LEFT IS THE FRIENDLIEST PARTY, WITH A FOUR-POINT PD AT THE TOP OF THE RAINBOW FACTOR RANKING. Bologna, May 22, 2019 – To date, 89 candidates for the European elections have signed the Come Out platform promoted by Ilga Europe and relaunched by Arcigay through the website votoarcobaleno.it. The document, divided into 5 specific points, commits the signatories to fight for human rights and equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex (LGBTI) people in the European Union and around the world. The party with the most signatories is currently The Left (29 candidates), followed by the Greens (24), Democratic Party (16), + Europe (13), Pirate Party (3), Brothers of Italy (2), Forza Italia (1), M5S (1). No signatories from other political groups. In the rainbow factor ranking, i.e. the preferences expressed by Internet users, the first five places are occupied by Daniele Viotti (PD – North West), Massimiliano Smeriglio (PD – Centre), Brando Maria Benifei (PD – North West), Roberta Mori (PD – North East) and Marilena Grassadonia (The Left – Centre). The “unfriendly” ranking sees Matteo Salvini (Lega – all constituencies) at the top, followed by Giorgia Meloni (Brothers of Italy – all constituencies), Alessandra Mussolini (Forza Italia – Center and South), Tiziana Beghin (M5S – North West) and Agostino Ghiglia (Brothers of Italy – North West). "Currently," comments Gabriele Piazzoni, Arcigay Secretary General, "Italy is the fourth-largest European country in terms of number of signatures on the platform, after Poland, France, and Germany. The most striking fact, however, is the absence of representatives from the two governing parties from this initiative: while we assumed Matteo Salvini's League was distant from our demands (and the fact that Salvini is the leader of the unfriendly candidates is further confirmation of this), the silence of the Five Star Movement, from whose ranks only one candidate has chosen to sign, adds to the ambiguity this political force has on our issues. We hope that the days leading up to the vote will clearly disprove this interpretation. Instead, we applaud the five candidates currently at the top of the rainbow factor rankings, who clearly enjoy support from our community: we hope that this ranking will be confirmed at the ballot box," concludes Piazzoni.
*EUROPEAN ELECTIONS, 89 CANDIDATES* HAVE JOINED THE COME OUT PLATFORM. THE LEFT IS THE MOST FRIENDLY PARTY, PD WINNERS AT THE TOP OF THE RAINBOW FACTOR RANKING* *Bologna, 22 May 2019* – To date, 89 candidates for the European elections have signed the Come Out platform promoted by Ilga Europe and relaunched by Arcigay through the website votoarcobaleno.it. The document, broken down into 5 specific points, commits the signatories to fight for human rights and equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and intersex (LGBTI) people in the European Union and around the world. The party with the most signatories today is The Left (29 candidates), followed by the Greens (24), Democratic Party (16), + Europe (13), Pirate Party (3), Brothers of Italy (2), Forza Italia (1), M5S (1). No signatories in the other political groups. In the rainbow factor ranking, i.e. the preferences expressed by Internet users, the first five places are occupied by Daniele Viotti (PD – North West), Massimiliano Smeriglio (PD – Centre), Brando Maria Benifei (PD – North West), Roberta Mori (PD – North East) and Marilena Grassadonia (The Left – Centre). The “unfriendly” ranking sees Matteo Salvini (Lega – all constituencies) at the top, followed by Giorgia Meloni (Brothers of Italy – all constituencies), Alessandra Mussolini (Forza Italia – Center and South), Tiziana Beghin (M5S – North West) and Agostino Ghiglia (Brothers of Italy – North West). "Currently," comments Gabriele Piazzoni, Arcigay Secretary General, "Italy is the fourth-largest European country in terms of number of signatures on the platform, after Poland, France, and Germany. The most striking fact, however, is the absence of representatives from the two governing parties from this initiative: while we assumed Matteo Salvini's League was distant from our demands (and the fact that Salvini is the leader of the unfriendly candidates is further confirmation of this), the silence of the Five Star Movement, from whose ranks only one candidate has chosen to sign, adds to the ambiguity this political force has on our issues. We hope that the days leading up to the vote will clearly disprove this interpretation. Instead, we applaud the five candidates currently at the top of the rainbow factor rankings, who clearly enjoy support from our community: we hope that this ranking will be confirmed at the ballot box," concludes Piazzoni.
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