For the past two years in Italy, the center-right has clearly won general elections and dominated regional ones, from Lazio to Lombardy; this year, defeated in Sardinia, the governing alliance confirmed Abruzzo, Basilicata and Piedmont. In the cities, no. Here the opposite happened: PD and allies consolidated their supremacy. They snatched difficult victories, such as Verona and Vicenza, regained iconic cities like Perugia, defended strongholds. Now, after last Sunday's ballots, the overall balance sees them firmly in the lead: they administer 57 capital municipalities against the center-right's 40 (and among those 57 are the country's four largest cities - Rome, Milan, Naples and Turin). This is the political map of Italy, bearing little resemblance to that of Parliament and the Regions. The cities go to the left, the provinces go to the right, as happens in other parts of the world.
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