Berlusconi Is Back
The “Jesus Christ of politics” has defied the march of time to claim a central role in Italy’s election.
Silvio Berlusconi at the beach in Tunisia in August 1984.
Photographer: Umberto Cicconi/Hulton Archive via Getty Images
Cruise-ship crooner, media mogul, soccer-club owner, prime minister, convicted fraudster, and now... kingmaker?
At 81, Silvio Berlusconi has defied rivals, prosecutors and sex scandals through a series of comebacks. And as Italians prepare to vote on March 4, the four-time premier is once again center-stage with his coalition set to be the biggest bloc in the new legislature.