ITALY POLITICS PRESIDENT

ITALY POLITICS PRESIDENT

epa03666646 The leader of the PDL Silvio Berlusconi (C) greets the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Laura Boldrini (R) during the first session of Lower and Upper House of Parliament and representatives of Italy's regional governments to elect a new President, Rome, Italy, 18 April 2013. A majority of two thirds of the 1007 voters is needed for a candidate be elected head of state in the first three ballots, which are held in the House. After that a simple majority of over half is required. Franco Marini, an elderly former trade unionist and president of the Senate, was expected to be the frontrunner in voting for the Italian presidency due to start Thursday. More than a thousand national and regional lawmakers were due to convene in a special joint parliamentary session starting at 10 am (0800 GMT) to elect the new head of state. Centre-left leader Pier Luigi Bersani and his conservative opponent Silvio Berlusconi signaled late on Wednesday that they were ready to support the 80-year-old Marini, who is a member of Bersani's Democratic Party (PD). EPA/MAURIZIO BRAMBATTI

☞ "텍사스 비료공장 폭발…60~70명 사망"(1보) < AFP > ☞ 이홍기 주연 '뜨거운 안녕' 6월 일본 개봉 ☞ 직장인 750만명 이번달 평균 25만원 건보료 더내야 ☞ < 美야구 > 추신수, 휴식 위해 시즌 첫 선발 제외 ☞ 이동통신 가입비, 2015년 완전 폐지 ▶ 연합뉴스 모바일앱 다운받기▶ 포토 매거진

< 저작권자(c)연합뉴스. 무단전재-재배포금지. >