Della Vedova, a long-time Radical, started to be active in politics in 1994, when he followed
Marco Pannella, founder and leader of the
Radical Party and the
Transnational Radical Party, into the
Pannella List, of which he was briefly secretary. During his career, Della Vedova was member of the
European Parliament for the
Bonino List (1999–2004), the electoral successor of the Pannella List, candidate for
President of Lombardy (2000), president of the Italian Radicals (2001–2003), founder and president of the
Liberal Reformers (2005–2009), which was then re-booted as
Libertiamo, member of the
Chamber of Deputies for
Forza Italia (2006–2008),
The People of Freedom (2008–2011), and
Future and Freedom (2011–2013), member of the
Senate of the Republic for Future and Freedom (2013),
Civic Choice (2013–2015), and the
Mixed Group (2015–2018), and under-secretary at the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the
Renzi government (2014–2016) and
Gentiloni government (2016–2018). From 2001 to 2003, Della Vedova was president of the Italian Radicals, a party launched after the defeat of the Bonino List in the
2001 Italian general election. In 2003, he was the strongest challenger to
Daniele Capezzone for the leadership of the party on a platform based on free-market
economic liberalism and the hidden proposal of joining
Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right
House of Freedoms coalition but was defeated. In 2005, he left the Italian Radicals, which under the leadership of Pannella, Bonino, and Capezzone had decided to join forces with the
Italian Democratic Socialists in the
Rose in the Fist and support
Romano Prodi and his centre-left
The Union, and launched the Liberal Reformers. In the
2006 Italian general election, Della Vedova was elected to the Chamber of Deputies on the list of Forza Italia, Berlusconi's party and dominant force in the House of Freedoms. Re-elected to the Chamber in the
2008 Italian general election, he later distanced himself from Berlusconi and the
centre-right coalition, joined Future and Freedom of
Gianfranco Fini, was elected senator in the
2013 Italian general election, switched to Civic Choice, and was appointed in the
centrist governments led by Prime Ministers from the
Democratic Party. In 2017, Della Vedova launched Forza Europa. In the run-up of the
2018 Italian general election, he was a founding member of More Europe, which was part of the
centre-left coalition. Having been defeated in the single-seat constituency of
Prato in
Tuscany, he was appointed coordinator of More Europe. In January 2019, he was elected secretary at the
party's founding congress. On 1 March 2021, he was appointed
Undersecretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in the
national unity government led by
Mario Draghi. == See also ==