Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi has announced his resignation after a political party in his coalition in Rome refused to participate in a confidence vote earlier in the day. Mario Draghi told the cabinet, “I will tender my resignation to the president of the republic this evening. The national unity coalition that backed this government no longer exists.”

One of the parties in the coalition government led by Mario Draghi, the Five Star Movement, opposed a new decree aimed at lowering inflation and battling rising energy costs. Many have contended that the opposition to his policy package is not so much ideological, but a result of internal party disputes.

A confidence vote was held by Italian lawmakers on the broad policy package today and the Five Star boycotted the vote despite Draghi previously threatening to step down if the party didn’t back it.

“The move by the M5S was largely triggered by turmoil prevailing within the ailing party rather than by meaningful policy differences with the executive.”

Wolfango Piccoli, co-president of the consultancy firm Teneo, said.

Draghi has been in power since February 2021 and has led a government formed by several parties and technocrats with the aim of bringing stability to the southern European nation, which is often thrown into fresh rounds of political chaos.