Italy's parliamentary elections kick off Sunday, with polls suggesting the center-left - led by Pier Luigi Bersani - is on track to defeat controversial three-time prime minister Silvio Berlusconi.
But Berlusconi's rise in the polls in recent weeks, combined with widespread public disillusionment, means that nothing about the race is a foregone conclusion.
The two-day election is a four-horse race between political coalitions led by Bersani, Berlusconi, outgoing premier Mario Monti, and the anti-establishment movement led by ex-comedian Beppe Grillo.
Polls are banned within two weeks of the elections, but the most recent ones had Bersani holding onto a slender lead over Berlusconi. Grillow was a distant third.
I have a feeling berlusconi aint gonna win this one
stuart
I have a feeling berlusconi aint gonna win this one
And why the election in Italy should concern you or anyone else ? Italians are not Anglo-Saxons. They are not Americans. They are Latins and Christian Catholics. They see things differently. I actually. like Berlusconi.
Allisio Rex
If you like Berlusconi, you hate Italy. He's Italy's cancer! I'm italian and proud to have voted a party that is not full of demagogy like Berlusconi's or Grillo's.