Toni Iwobi, a Nigerian IT entrepreneur who has spent 38 years in Italy, has been elected as the first black senator in the European country.
He was elected on the platform of Matteo Salvini, a party accused of stirring up xenophobia in Italy.
Iwobi was elected in the industrial city of Brescia in northern Italy.
“It is with great excitement that I can tell you I have been elected senator,” he said in a brief statement.
A member of the anti-migrant League, Iwobi emerged a town councillor in 1995.
Ansa en Politics, an Italian website, described him as a committed activist.
Iwobi is said to be the party’s immigration and security chief, speaking regularly on Italian TV.
The 62year old man has been contesting since the past 25years, and won for the first time in last Sunday’s Italian election.
Mr Iwobi came to Italy on a student visa some 40 years ago, before going on to marry an Italian woman and started his own IT company in Italy. (Vanguard)