Omar Chessa is the new rector of the University of Sassari: in the runoff on Monday, September 28, he received 364 votes, compared with 312 for Francesco Morandi. The election marks the start of the succession to Gavino Mariotti, whose term will end in December, and concludes the contest between two candidates with different backgrounds and career paths at the university.
The vote was held online, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Chessa, a professor of constitutional law, reached the second round after receiving 227 votes in the previous ballot; Morandi, a professor of tourism law, had received 267. To learn about the two candidates and the stages of the contest, read the report on the runoff between Morandi and Chessa.
A total of 1,065 of the 1,166 eligible voters took part in the second ballot, a turnout of 91.34%. Unlike the first two rounds, the runoff did not require an absolute majority: the winner simply needed to receive more votes than the opponent. Chessa prevailed by a margin of 52 votes.
Chessa is a member of the Italian Association of Constitutional Law Scholars and was part of Alessandra Todde’s defense team in the proceedings concerning her removal from office. During Mariotti’s six-year term as rector, Chessa had not held any positions at the university. Morandi, by contrast, had served as regional tourism councillor in the Pigliaru administration and had played a role in the university’s governance: his profile was associated with greater continuity with the outgoing administration.
Mariotti’s succession is beginning while he is among the 25 defendants committed to trial in the Monte Nuovo investigation, conducted by the Cagliari District Anti-Mafia Directorate and the Carabinieri’s ROS special operations unit. The investigation alleges a mafia-type criminal association aimed at committing crimes against public administration and brings various charges against the suspects. Mariotti has denied the allegations; being committed to trial is not a conviction, and responsibility will have to be established in court.
In his first remarks after the result, Chessa stressed the need to rebuild a shared sense of belonging. “The University of Sassari needs to rediscover that it is a community. Now we must work to rebuild a collective sense of belonging: a university that is not a place of freedom is not a university,” he said. Mariotti’s term will end on December 6, the date set for the end of the outgoing rector’s term.