This concerns you, ONLY if you are
(1) Italian, and are permanent or temporary residents of the United States' OR
(2) American, that hold Italian or dual citizenship (US and Italian)

Franco Giannotti, is the Publisher of "Italy at St.Louis", and is one of the Candidates  in the Chicago Consulate area. For those of you in that Consulate area, I encourage you to Vote for FRANCO GIANNOTTI on List #1, “COMITATO TRICOLORE....

Your 3 remaining Votes Must be Cast for Candidates also on List # 1, or it will be invalidated, Franco is Recommending Lombardo, who is the Publisher of Il Pensiero"

I have known Franco for three years, and during that time, he has built his Non Profit Portal from 5,000 "hits" per month to near 200,000. His dedication to the Italian Community has been Exemplary. He has done it with Charm and Dignity.
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Who will vote
Voters, who must be duly registered, are those who hold Italian or dual citizenship (US and Italian) and are permanent or temporary residents of the United States.

Therefore, Italians everywhere, outside of Italy. This is an unprecedented and momentous electorate event that is taking place literally around the world, at the very same time, with the same method and modalities but with different candidates in each locale.   It goes without saying that this is a massive undertaking; take a few minutes to be counted among its participants.

Timing
By March 26, next Friday and less than a week away, all ballots must be received by the Italian Consulate office in your consular jurisdiction.  Must be received, not just postmarked as one may be accustomed to dealing with deadlines.  The onus is on you to determine how long it will take US mail to arrive and, just in case, give yourself an extra day…

Who are they voting for
The COMITES, (acronym for “Comitati per gli Italiani all’Estero”) is by Italian Law an agency charged with representing the Italian community to the Italian Consulates and other diplomatic/governmental entities, in matters of social, cultural and civil nature for the benefit of the Italian community.  Each consular district elects at least 12 candidates to a 5-year term.  Yours truly, Franco Giannotti, is one of 40 candidates seeking one of the 12 spots for the Chicago district.

Chicago candidates
There is a total of three lists in Chicago, ours is LIST #1: “COMITATO TRICOLORE PER GLI ITALIANI NEL MONDO”, the other two lists are “COMIT-USA” and “VIAM”.  Even though the Chicago consular district comprises 11 Midwestern states, most of the 40 candidates are from the Chicago/Milwaukee area, our list is the only one with candidates from outside of that area, namely from St. Louis and Denver.

What to watch out for
Voting should be easy, providing you carefully read the instructions accompanying the ballot.  However, keep in mind the following:  vote ONLY for candidates of one list, voting across lists voids your ballot.  Use a black or blue pen.  Other than a mark next to your chosen candidate(s) do not put any other marks on your ballot, electorate certificate stub or either of the two envelopes or your vote will be disqualified.

Hopefully you will know who you are voting for and why that person is getting your vote.  Are they deserving of your trust?  Remember, they will be representing you for 5 years so don’t vote lightly.  You may have heard lots of very enticing promises and seen comprehensive lists that cover just about every need one might wish for.  Very impressive and very commendable, except you should question whether those people have the legal authority to even offer those services and, most important, where will the necessary funding be coming from.  Be aware that the current COMITES has not received money from the Italian Government in the past 5 years and COMITES in many cities were forced to vacate their spartan offices because they could not pay the rent.

Be wary of those who say that past COMITES have done nothing for the community, especially those who in fact were part of it themselves.  They are probably speaking about their own contribution, thus their claim may be perfectly justified as well as being a good indication of what you can expect if you re-elect them.  Some very important events took place in the past, some of which led to the new law under which the new COMITES will operate.  If you want to know more about it, just give us a call…

Finally, dealing with consulate/government representatives and at the same time dealing with the culturally varied community we are to represent, takes skills and levels of empathy that not everyone may be comfortable with, doing it day-in and day-out for the next 5 years, on a completely voluntary basis.  Many candidates gravitate toward only one aspect of our culturally diverse community.  Some will even discriminate if the proper language is not spoken.  Some may even be doing it just not to be left out, while some may be not be taking it very seriously and are just running because a friend asked them to.

This is serious business and you should only be favoring those who are serious about representing you.  More than their promises look at what they have accomplished over the years for the community.  Look for tangible accomplishments over long periods of time.  Quantity, quality and degree of perseverance are needed from your candidates.

We believe that the people we have in List #1 do represent the qualities you should be looking for.  Collectively they offer EXPERIENCE, COMMUNICATIVE MEANS AND SKILLS, GEOGRAPHICAL COVERAGE and an intimate know-how and personal involvement in many of the ASSOCIATIONS that form the Italian-American communities.

We urge to vote for List #1 and to choose up to 4 candidates of your liking; I hope to be one of them.  Thank you.

                                                                                   Franco Giannotti
Resources

Take the time to visit the following informative internet sites:
 

Still hesitant about voting?
CAN VOTING AFFECT THE RIGHT TO AMERICAN CITIZENSHIP?
No.  Upon request (1) of the Italian Embassy the "Department of State" states (2) that:  "...With  respect to any adverse effect of participation in an Italian election in the manner described on the personal rights of the Italian nationals involved,  current United States law would not cause loss of  United States nationality in the case of an Italian national who is also a United States national if the person merely voted or becomes a candidate for elective office in Italy"

(1): Request from the Italian Embassy

(2): Reply from the "Department of State"

The above documents are furnished courtesy of the Italian Embassy in Washington, DC