ITALY FANFANI'S TEST ALONG THE GRAND CANAL IN VENICE, A HUGE, BRIGHTLY 
LIT RED-AND-WHITE SHIELD OF THE CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATIC PARTY GLEAMS IN THE 
NIGHT ; SPROUTING FROM ROME'S JANICULUM HILL, OVERLOOKING THE VATICAN, IS 
THE RED-WHITE-GREEN FLAME OF THE TINY, POWERLESS FASCISTS . FROM MESSINA 
TO MILAN LAST WEEK, WIDE PIAZZAS AND NARROW ALLEYWAYS SPROUTED IN 
RIOTOUS CAMPAIGN COLORS, AND ECHOED WITH THE LOUDSPEAKER SLOGANS OF SCUDDING 
LITTLE FIAT 600S, AS ITALY'S 34,300,000 VOTERS PREPARED TO GO TO 
THE POLLS FOR THE FIRST NATIONAL ELECTION IN FIVE YEARS . 
THE ELECTION IS THE MOST IMPORTANT SINCE 1948, WHEN THE COMMUNISTS 
WERE DEFEATED IN A CRUCIAL BID FOR POWER . THE THREAT 
OF A RED TAKEOVER HAS LONG SINCE FADED ; THIS TIME 
THE MAIN ISSUE IS CONTINUATION OF THE APERTURA A SINISTRA (OPENING 
TO THE LEFT), PREMIER AMINTORE FANFANI'S YEAR-OLD EXPERIMENT IN PARLIAMENTARY COOPERATION 
WITH THE LEFT-WING SOCIALISTS . MIXED BLESSING . THE DEAL HAS 
GIVEN FANFANI THE NECESSARY MAJORITY TO INTRODUCE A LONG LIST OF 
ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL REFORMS ; IT ALSO PROVIDES THE OPPORTUNITY FOR 
ISOLATING THE REDS BY FINALLY BREAKING THEIR HOLD ON PIETRO NENNI'S 
SOCIALISTS . BUT THE APERTURA ALSO OPENS THE WAY TO FAR-REACHING 
GOVERNMENT PLANNING AND HIGHER TAXES, BOTH OF WHICH ARE STRONGLY OPPOSED 
BY LARGE AND SMALL BUSINESSMEN ; PERHAPS SIGNIFICANTLY, LIBERAL PARTY LEADER 
GIOVANNI MALAGODI, AN ECONOMIC CONSERVATIVE WHO SHARPLY CRITICIZES FANFANI'S FLIRTATION WITH 
THE LEFT, HAS BEEN DRAWING LARGE AND ENTHUSIASTIC CROWDS . ANOTHER 
ANXIETY CREATED BY THE CENTER-LEFT COALITION IS THAT NEUTRALIST NENNI WILL 
WEAKEN ITALY'S TIES TO THE ATLANTIC ALLIANCE . THESE FEARS COULD 
COST FANFANI'S CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATS AS MANY AS 1,000,000 VOTES . AS 
ALWAYS, THE VATICAN IS A HOT CAMPAIGN ISSUE ; THIS TIME, 
POPE JOHN HAS MADE IT HOTTER THAN USUAL BY MEETING ALEKSEI 
ADZHUBEI, NIKITA KHRUSHCHEV'S SON-IN-LAW, LAST MONTH, AND OTHERWISE ESTABLISHING FRIENDLIER RELATIONS 
WITH THE KREMLIN . FORTNIGHT AGO, THE COMMUNIST NEWSPAPER L'UNITA EXAGGERATED 
POPE JOHN'S RECENT PACEM IN TERRIS ENCYCLICAL AS AN " AN 
APPEAL FOR PEACE BASED ON NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT . " THIS PROMPTED 
A PROGOVERNMENT NEWSPAPER TO CRACK THAT THE REDS WERE SUDDENLY " 
MORE PAPIST THAN THE POPE . " IN FACT, THE VATICAN 
IS QUIETLY BACKING FANFANI'S CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATIC-SOCIALIST PARTNERSHIP, THOUGH PUBLICLY IT HAS 
STEERED A NEUTRAL COURSE ; THIS TIME, FOR EXAMPLE, PARISH PRIESTS 
ARE NOT SAYING THAT TO VOTE FOR THE SOCIALISTS IS A 
GRAVE SIN . USEFUL VISIT . ANOTHER JOHN WHO CASTS HIS 
SHADOW OVER THE CAMPAIGN IS JOHN F . KENNEDY . THE 
U.S . HAS SMOOTHLY SHIFTED ITS SUPPORT AWAY FROM CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATIC 
RIGHT-WINGERS WHO WOULD LIKE TO CLOSE THE APERTURA, NOW FAVORS FANFANI'S 
COALITION . ONE GROUP OF FANFANI SUPPORTERS IS DUBBED THE " 
KENNEDIANI, " AND THE PREMIER, DASHING ABOUT THE COUNTRYSIDE IN A 
BLACK LANCIA, REPEATEDLY RECALLS FOR TOWNSFOLK HIS RECENT VISIT TO WASHINGTON 
AS EVIDENCE OF ITALY'S HIGH STANDING WITH THE U.S . FOR 
CAMPAIGN PURPOSES EVEN FANFANI'S SOCIALIST ALLIES HAVE BEEN WARMING TO THE 
U.S . ASKED A SOCIALIST SPEAKER, CONFIDENT OF AN AFFIRMATIVE ANSWER 
FROM A CROWD IN BOLOGNA'S PIAZZA MATTEOTTI : " IF KENNEDY 
WERE IN ITALY, WOULD HE NOT SUPPORT THE OPENING TO THE 
LEFT ? " PERHAPS HE WOULD . MORE TO THE POINT 
: WILL THE ITALIANS ? AS THE VOTERS HEAD FOR THE 
POLLS THIS WEEK, PREVAILING OPINION WAS THAT THEY WOULD . 