Italy's right to try to elect Senate speaker as president, snubbing left

FILE PHOTO: A member of parliament casts a vote to elect Italy's new president, at the Chamber of Deputies in Rome, Italy, January 27, 2022. REUTERS/Remo Casilli/Pool

ROME (Reuters) -Italy's parliament began a fifth attempt to elect a new president on Friday, with the centre-right parties saying they will try to push through Senate speaker Elisabetta Casellati for the powerful role.

That would be a direct snub to the centre-left after days of fruitless talk about the need to elect a consensus candidate that can draw broad cross-party support.