European Parliament Vice-President Pina Picierno has launched a new political initiative in Italy, “Spazio Pubblico” (“Public Space”), days after leaving both Italy’s Democratic Party (PD) and the Socialist family in Brussels.
The project is explicitly framed around a strongly pro-EU view, Atlanticism, and unwavering support for Ukraine, including continued Western military assistance to Kyiv and political backing for President Volodymyr Zelensky in the war against Russia.
According to political analysts, the initiative aims to create the nucleus for a new centrist bloc in Italy, bringing together liberal forces that do not identify either with Giorgia Meloni’s centre-right government or with the fragmented centre-left opposition. If successful, “Spazio Pubblico” could establish a third political pole running in the 2027 general election against both the centre-right bloc and a consolidated centre-left alliance.
The launch follows Picierno’s formal departure from the Democratic Party on June 4, 2026. Shortly afterwards, she left the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) in the European Parliament—of which the PD is part—and joined the European Democratic Party (EDP) within the liberal Renew Europe group. “Spazio Pubblico” is expected to function as a national expression of the Renew Europe political space.
Born on May 10, 1981, Giuseppina “Pina” Picierno is one of Italy’s most prominent pro-EU politicians. She entered national politics through centre-left youth organisations and was elected to the Italian Chamber of Deputies in 2008 and then became a Member of the European Parliament in 2014. In January 2022, she was elected Vice-President of the European Parliament, becoming one of Italy’s highest-ranking representatives in EU institutions.
Her political profile rose significantly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, when she emerged as one of the most vocal Italian supporters of Zelensky. Since then, she has consistently backed sanctions against Russia, stronger European defence capabilities and sustained military aid to Ukraine.
She is also widely recognised as a strong supporter of Israel. While she has recently expressed some criticism of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, her positions on both Israel and Ukraine remain central to her political identity.
Picierno has described her departure from the PD as the result of a widening strategic divide over the party’s direction, particularly on foreign policy. In her view, the centre-left has become increasingly ambiguous on Ukraine and too willing to accommodate forces that do not share a clear Atlanticist stance.
Tensions have also emerged over the prospect of a broader centre-left alliance ahead of the 2027 general election, whose main pillar would be an alliance between the Democratic Party (PD) and the Five Star Movement (M5S). Picierno has repeatedly criticised the M5S for what she considers an insufficiently clear position on military support for Kyiv and for the perceived proximity of some of its figures to Russia.
“Spazio Pubblico” is currently a political platform rather than a structured party, designed to aggregate centrist, liberal and pro-EU actors scattered across Italy’s political landscape. Analysts see the initiative as an attempt to fill a political vacuum between the governing right and the centre-left opposition ahead of the 2027 elections, appealing to strongly Atlanticist, pro-Israel, pro-Zelensky and pro-EU voters who feel unrepresented by existing political formations.
If developed further, the project could evolve into a new liberal-centrist pole aligned with Renew Europe at European level, while remaining an autonomous actor within Italian politics.
No polling data is currently available, as the movement is too new to be included in national surveys.
