Millions of Italians will vote on Sunday in an election that is forecast to return the country's most right-wing government since World War Two and usher in its first woman prime minister.
Italy's first autumn national election in more than a century was triggered by party infighting that brought down Prime Minister Mario Draghi's broad national unity government in July.
With a polls blackout in force in the two weeks before the election, there is still scope for a surprise. A late surge by 5-Star could jeopardise the rightist alliance's chances of winning a majority in the Senate or upper house, complicating the process of forming a government. The outcome of the vote will also be watched nervously in European capitals and on financial markets.