Antonio Bassolino

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Antonio Bassolino.

Antonio Bassolino (born March 20, 1947) is an Italian politician. He is currently governor of the Campania region.

[edit] Biography

Bassolino was born in Afragola, Campania. At 17 he entered the Federation of Young Italian Communists, and in 1970 became member of the regional council for the Italian Communist Party (PCI), and, the following year, secretary of the party section in Avellino. He held the latter position until 1975, when he became regional secretary for the PCI; from 1972, he was member of the party's national committee. In 1987, he was elected to the Italian Chamber of Deputies in the college of Catanzaro, becoming president of the Parliament media committee in 1990.

In the process leading to the split-up of the PCI into the Democratic Party of the Left (PDS) and the Party of the Communist Refoundation (PRC), Bassolino represented the moderate wing that sought mediation. Eventually, he joined the PDS.

In 1992, he was reelected to the Chamber, and, in 1993, he was sent to Naples to reform the local section of PDS — which had been involved in the Tangentopoli bribe scandal. It was there that he gained a fame of a "hardman", one which surfaced during the subsequent election for mayor, which he won by defeating the right-wing candidate, Alessandra Mussolini.

Bassolino's following year as mayor of Naples are generally viewed as a period of civil, economical and social renaissance for the city. In 1997 he was reelected, this time with the 72.9% of the votes. In October of 1998, Premier Massimo D'Alema nominated him Minister of Welfare; however, after the assassination of his advisor Massimo D'Antona in the October 1999, Bassolino resigned in order to focus his activities on Naples.

In 2000, he ran for the presidency of Campania, which raised some controversies. He was elected with 54.3% of the votes, and, in the elections of April 2005, with up to 61.6%%. Among his accomplishments as governor of Campania are the construction of a regional metropolitan rail service and the new TAV station in his native Afragola for high-speed trains. However, it has been argued that, under his administration, the regional debt was doubled.

Bassolino received the Prize "Gold Star" for his commitment to developing tourism and cultural ventures in Naples during his years as mayor. His essays include Mezzogiorno alla prova (1980) and La repubblica delle città (1996).