The Political and Civic Journey of Antonio Decaro: From Engineer to Mayor of Bari

Antonio Decaro, 53 years old, an engineer, has been the mayor of Bari, the city where he was born, since June 8, 2014. The year before, he was elected as a deputy. Since 2016, he has lived under police protection due to mafia threats he has received. He is married and has two daughters. At 25, he graduated in civil engineering, specializing in transportation. He practices as a freelance professional, works at the Polytechnic University of Bari, and at 29 becomes the deputy head of the Puglia Aqueduct department. In 2000, he started collaborating with Anas as the director of compartmental technical services, director of the maintenance center for the Province of Bari, and regional director of the Project Office. In 2004, the mayor of Bari, Michele Emiliano, appointed him as councilor for Mobility and Traffic in his first council, as an external expert technician. In 2008, thanks to numerous projects carried out, he received the 'Friend of the Bicycle' award from Fiab (Italian Federation of Friends of the Bicycle). In the same year, Legambiente awarded him 'Environmentalists of the year 2008'. In 2010, he was elected regional councilor in Puglia in the Bari constituency. In the Region, he served as the leader of the Democratic Party group until April 2013, while also holding the position of councilor delegated to mobility, on a voluntary basis. During his mandate in the Region, he was the promoter of bills approved by the regional council on information technology pluralism and on the adoption and dissemination of free software and on the activity of widespread hotel accommodation. Among the bills he worked on is the establishment of the public register of elected officials and on transparency and information. In November 2012, the 'Interventions to promote the development of cycling mobility' law, for which he was the first signatory, was approved in the Regional Council. In December 2012, he ran in the 'parliamentary' elections for the Democratic Party, becoming the first elected in the male component. On March 15, 2013, with the start of the XVII legislature, he was proclaimed Deputy of the Italian Republic. In Parliament, he was a member of the parliamentary intergroup for new mobility/cycling mobility, and together with other parliamentarians, he was committed to writing the national law on Cycling Mobility. On January 11, 2014, he ran for the position of mayor of Bari. On June 8, 2014, in the second round, he was elected mayor of the city of Bari. In June 2014, he was appointed a member of ANCI in the State-City Local Autonomies and Unified Conference. From January 1, 2015, he is the Mayor of the Metropolitan City of Bari. On January 29, 2015, he was appointed Vice President of National ANCI with the delegation 'Southern Italy and Policies for Territorial Cohesion' and a member of the Committee of the Regions, an advisory body of the European Union, based in Brussels, which gives voice to regional and local authorities. From August 2016, he is the President of the Board of Directors of the Petruzzelli Foundation and Theaters of Bari. From October 2016, he is the President of ANCI: the election took place during the 33rd National Assembly held in Bari, from October 12 to 14. From June 2018, he is a member of the board of directors of Cassa Depositi e Prestiti. In the 2019 Municipal elections, he was re-elected mayor, beating the center-right opponent Pasquale Di Rella in the first round with 66.27% of the votes (more than 40 points difference).