Leadership of MSI
Despite his defeat Rauti's position within the party was soon strengthened. Fini looked to the success of Jean-Marie Le Pen and the Front National in France and, seeking to utilise the template they had established, sought to make opposition to immigration the central policy of the MSI. The move provoked alarm as it seemed that Fini was seeking to abandon fascism altogether and instead turn the MSI to populism. This radical departure, combined with some poor electoral showings, led to Rauti replacing Fini as leader in 1990.
As leader Rauti sought to underline the party's fascism as being a radical revolutionary creed that, he argued, should not be considered right-wing. He also underlined his opposition to the USA and Western values as well as his support for ethnopluralism. However the 3.9% of the vote captured at the 1990 regional elections represented the worst return in MSI history and a further slump in support in local elections in Sicily saw him removed from the leadership in July 1991 and replaced by Fini.
Read more about this topic: Pino Rauti
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