Berlusconi arrived at a campaign rally in the town of Segrate, a few kilometers northeast of Milan, on Friday evening, mistakenly believing that he had arrived at the rally for the candidate from Forza Italia.
After walking around the square for a few minutes, Berlusconi asked someone to tell him the name of the candidate, and then proceeded, to the awe of the crowd, to encourage people to "Vote Paolo," who turned out to be Paolo Micheli, the candidate with the backing of Italy's current ruling center-left Democratic Party. "Young people, I'm counting on you to vote Paolo," Berlusconi blurted, before being informed by a member of his entourage that he had made a mistake.
Berlusconi appeared to have gotten lost while looking for the rally of Tecla Fraschini, who was holding a similar campaign event at a nearby hall.
Micheli playfully reacted to the former PM's 'support' on his Facebook page, noting that "with the support of Il Cavaliere [Berlusconi's longtime nickname, meaning 'The Knight'] I can say I've won."
Dopo l'endorsement del Cavaliere posso dire che è fatta. ;-)
Posted by Paolo Micheli on Saturday, May 30, 2015
Ora sì, il cambiamento è possibile!#segrate2015 #lol
Posted by Paolo Micheli on Saturday, May 30, 2015
"Now yes, change is possible!"
Berlusconi, 78, has served as prime minister three times between 1994 and 2011. He had announced plans for a political comeback earlier this year, but remains banned from running for office following a series of trials and allegations leveled against him, from underage sex and abuse of office to corruption and illegal party financing.
