Migrants Are Hot-Button Issue as Italians Prepare to Vote

UMBERTIDE, Italy—Armando Paolucci, an itinerant butcher from this rugged town in central Italy, voted for left-wing parties all his life. Once, he even ran as a Communist candidate for the local council.

But on March 4, besides celebrating his 65th birthday, he will vote for the anti-immigration Lega (League) party in Italy’s national elections. The country’s center-left incumbents, he says, have lost touch with ordinary people and are devoting too many resources to support migrants.