Giulio Andreotti has served as Italy's prime minister seven times.
Some of his other fame is not so reputable as he is known for his mafia contacts and has been publicly accused of these connections in the past, however, he has never been formally convicted even though authorities tried.
In November 2002, Andreotti was convicted for ordering the murder of journalist Mino Pecorelli who had apparently published allegations that Andreotti had ties to the mob. The judge at that time sentenced Andreotti to 24 years imprisonment. But Andreotti fought the sentence and won. He was immediately released and when the appeal was held one year later, the conviction was overturned.
Since 1946, Andreotti has served public office without any interruption. He has been continuously re-elected to his postings for most of his political career.
During his time in office, he served as the last Christian Democratic prime minister of his country. What ended this role was the admittance of a secret anti-communist structure that was involved in Italy's strategy planning. The confession ultimately ended the party entirely.
Following the April 2006 general election, Andreotti, agreed to be the House of Freedoms candidate for the Presidency of the Senate.
On February, 21, 2007 he abstained from a vote in the Senate concerning Minister D'Alema's report on foreign politcs. This choice, together with the abstentions of the other life senator Sergio Pininfarina and of two communist senators, caused the government to lose the vote.
Despite the controversy surrounding Andreotti's actions in the latter part of his career, he is still well respected among many Italian voters. Those who know him well sometimes refer to him as Divo Giulio, a term originating from Latin's Divine Julius, an epithet to Julius Caesar. The reference is said to honor his authority and importance.
The father of four regularly writes articles for Italy's Corriere della Sera.