Rome, December 22 (RHC)-- A new poll shows that more than one-third of Italians would vote for right-wing party, Northern League, an increase of five percentage points. According to a Demos and Pi poll, published by La Republica newspaper on Sunday, 35 percent of Italians said they would vote for the Northern League's 41-year-old leader, Matteo Salvini.

The Northern League holds strong views against Italy's membership in the EU and what it considers the country's lax regulations on immigration. In the 2013 general elections in Italy, Salvini came just behind current Prime Minister Matteo Renzo. Salvini is widely viewed with skepticism in Italy's south, where a poorer population is struggling with mafia activity and crime.

The new poll, however, indicated that a larger population of people in the south is now ready to vote for the Northern League. According to the Sunday poll, Renzi's popularity stood at 46 percent in December.