Silvio Berlusconi, (born Sept. 29, 1936, Milan, Italy—died June 12, 2023, Milan), Italian media tycoon and prime minister of Italy (1994; 2001–06; 2008–11). After graduating from the University of Milan, he became a real estate developer and had amassed a considerable fortune by the 1970s. By the 1990s he had come to own more than 150 businesses, including three television networks and Italy’s largest publishing house. In 1994 he founded Forza Italia, a conservative political party, and was elected prime minister. Faced with conflict of interest and other charges, he resigned in December 1994. He was later convicted of fraud and corruption, though the convictions were eventually overturned. Despite these charges and criticism of his control of much of the Italian media, he remained the leader of Forza Italia and again became prime minister in 2001. His support of the Iraq War proved unpopular, and he struggled to improve the country’s economy. In the 2006 elections his coalition was defeated by a centre-left bloc headed by Romano Prodi. Following Prodi’s resignation in 2008, Berlusconi won a third term as prime minister. However, a series of personal scandals and a shaky Italian economy caused Berlusconi’s support to fade, and he resigned in November 2011. In spite of the fall of his government, numerous convictions in criminal trials, a formal expulsion from the Senate, and a ban on holding public office, Berlusconi remained perhaps the single most influential figure in Italian politics. His coalition captured the largest share of the vote in Italy’s 2018 parliamentary elections, and in 2019, after having his political ban overturned, Berlusconi won a seat in the European Parliament.
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