Gianni Letta

Gianni Letta ( born April 15, 1935 in Avezzano, L' Aquila Province ) is an Italian politician of the Forza Italia (from 2008 Popolo della Libertà ), lawyer and journalist. In all governments Silvio Berlusconi, he was the highest-ranking State Secretary to the Prime Minister (May 1994 - January 1995, June 2001 - May 2006 May 2008 - November 2011).

Political career

After studying law is devoted Letta after a few years profession to journalism and worked for several newspapers, for RAI and ANSA as a correspondent in the Abruzzo regional capital L' Aquila.

Since 1958 he was editor of the Rome newspaper Il Tempo, which he headed from 1973 to 1987. He was then engaged in Berlusconi's media holding company Fininvest as a manager and publicist and was there primarily responsible for the political and cultural program of the TV channel Canale 5.

After the electoral victory of the center-right Alliance Polo delle Libertà brought him Berlusconi in May 1994 as Secretary of State and main coordinator of the government's work in his office the Palazzo Chigi. Even after the fall of the first Berlusconi government, he remained on the side of the media entrepreneur, playing mainly from 1997 in Bicamerale, the parliamentary commission for constitutional reforms, a significant role. A decisive influence is attributed to him also in the formation of the center-right coalition Casa delle Libertà as the late 1990s.

From 2001 to 2006, and in May 2008 he returned to Berlusconi's electoral victories back in the office of the Secretary of State and Chief Coordinator of the Italian government. As the government bearing the parliamentary elections in 2006 lost out on Berlusconi hit him in May 2006 at the re-election of the President as the successor of Carlo Azeglio Ciampi ago. However, after four rounds of voting was defeated Giorgio Napolitano, the candidate of the center-left coalition. He had thereby obtained on the first ballot ( 369 of 673 votes needed ) The best result.

Trivia

In Alberto Sordis film Io so che tu sai che io so (1982 ) Gianni Letta plays himself in a supporting role.

His nephew Enrico Letta, who belongs to the opposition center-left camp, took over the change of power in May 2006 from his position as Secretary to the Prime Minister, when Romano Prodi was the government. He was appointed on April 28, 2013 Prime Minister of Italy.