Rome: Calenda opens to Gualtieri, but talks are not a deal
Carlo Calenda is open to supporting Roberto Gualtieri in Rome, but still describes discussions about a programme rather than a completed electoral agreement.[1]
In the Start interview published by Sky TG24 at 11:51 on 13 November, the Azione leader says he is “fairly favourable” to supporting the mayor and confirms that talks have begun.[1]
## An opening to the mayor, a break with D’Amato
In the same interview, Calenda rejects the idea that a move to the right is at issue and says Alessio D’Amato is no longer in Azione.[1]
This is the leader’s statement: the sources consulted here do not document a separate internal decision, with a date and procedure, that we could present as independently verified.
Il Tempo’s report at 10:34 records both the opening to Gualtieri and the confrontation with Goffredo Bettini: Calenda links the dispute to obtaining a position in the city executive and rejects that approach.[2]
The newspaper also reports that he had already communicated his position to D’Amato.[2]
This is outside reporting on the same interview, not a second, independent party announcement.
## The programme is still the test
Calenda argues that Gualtieri is implementing measures that belonged to Azione’s programme: that is his political assessment, reported by Il Tempo, not our own audit of the city administration’s performance.[2]
The original interview explicitly describes ongoing talks about the programme.[1]
Shared commitments and an explicit decision on support would therefore be needed to establish the outcome: the leader’s personal opening should not be turned into a settled coalition.
That distinction also helps explain the internal dispute. Willingness to talk to the mayor can coexist with disagreement about relationships within the centre-left; neither establishes a new national alliance. This is our editorial reading, separate from the statements attributed to those involved.
## Sources
[1] https://tg24.sky.it/politica/video/2026/11/13/carlo-calenda-roberto-gualtieri-sostegno-1139638
[2] https://www.iltempo.it/news/politica/calenda-scarica-damato-via-da-azione-si-al-dialogo-con-gualtieri-ma-veto-su-bettini