Mussolini's Great-Grandson to Run for European Parliament

Giorgia Meloni, the leader of the Italian far-right party Fratelli D'Italia (FDI), announced earlier this month in a Facebook video that the great-grandson of former Italian dictator Benito Mussolini would be running for a vacant seat in the European Parliament.

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In the Facebook video released by Meloni, she introduced Caio Guilio Cesare Mussolini, who she said would be running for European Parliament in the upcoming elections on May 26.

According to the Washington Post, the nomination of Mussolini's great-grandson has little to do with his platform and more to do with his family's history.

While Mussolini did not specifically mention his great-grandfather's fascism, he did reveal his admiration for the former Italian dictator who ruled Italy from 1919 to 1945.

In an interview with the newspaper Il Messaggero, Mussolini said that he "will always be proud" of his family name and that he hopes voters will appreciate the "Mussolini brand."

Not shying away from his grandfather's legacy, Mussolini made reference to Italy's history and used a controversial font popular with neo-fascist groups in his promotional billboards. His slogan is #scriviMussolini, or #writeMussolini.

The 50-year-old former naval officer, Caio Mussolini is the grandson of Vittorio, the second of Benito Mussolini's five acknowledged children.

Like some other descendants of the former Italian dictator, Caio maintained an ambivalent relationship with family history.

Caio's father, Guido, was a political activist for the identitarian radical party Forza Nuova. His second cousin, Alessandra Mussolini, has served both in the Italian and European parliaments, with different affiliations, ranging from the radical right Alternativa Sociale to Silvio Berlusconi's self-described "center-right" Forza Italia.