Mario Calabresi, former director of La Stampa and Repubblica, now head of the Chora Media podcast network, has publicly confirmed he is considering running for mayor of Milan as a candidate for the center-left. During a public event near the city, asked by the audience whether he would run, Calabresi replied that he is thinking about it and would like to do his part for Milan, if the conditions are right. His name has been circulating as a possible center-left candidate for about a year, but this is the first time he has personally expressed such explicit interest.

According to opinion polls cited in the press, Calabresi would currently be the leading candidate against potential center-right challengers. Former Milan mayor Gabriele Albertini has reportedly described him as unbeatable. However, within the local Democratic Party (PD) there is significant resistance to his candidacy. Several party factions are reluctant to support a civic candidate who comes from outside the party ranks, preferring instead a candidate with a more conventional political profile.

The main rival within the center-left is Pier Francesco Majorino, currently described as the strongest candidate in the field. Majorino, who was defeated in the regional election race against Attilio Fontana and is close to PD secretary Elly Schlein, has reaffirmed his intention to run in the primaries, citing polls that he says show him as the winner. According to some reports, these polls are self-commissioned, a characterization that has not been independently confirmed.

Other figures who have expressed interest or are considered potential candidates include Deputy Mayor Anna Scavuzzo, Budget Assessor Emmanuel Conte, Culture Assessor Tommaso Sacchi, along with Carlotta Cossutta, Tommaso Goisis, and Gianni Barbacetto. The center-left field therefore appears crowded, with internal tensions over whether to hold primaries and over the choice between a civic candidate and a party-backed figure. The timeline for the primaries remains uncertain, also due to the national-level discussions within the PD on how to select the coalition candidate.

On the center-right side, the field is still undefined. According to Editoriale Domani, the right is also struggling to identify its candidate.

Calabresi's motivations appear tied to his connection to the city, where he returned after 25 years of working elsewhere, and to a project for Milan focused on local identity and civic substance. His willingness to compete in primaries, rather than waiting to be co-opted, marks a shift from earlier expectations that he would only enter the race if directly chosen by a broad coalition.