Luigi Di Maio served as a labour and economic development minister in the coalition government with the right-wing Lega party, which broke up over their numerous differences last month.
Conte has met with the anti-establishment M5S and its new ally, the centre-left Democratic Party, earlier in the day and is expected to return to President Sergio Mattarella later to seek a mandate for their coalition.
Major Italian papers published stories predicting the lineup. La Repubblica cited sources in the Democratic Party as saying that its members would have an equal number of ministerial portfolios as the M5S.
The Italian prime minister is expected to keep key ministers from the M5S, according to Il Corriere della Sera. Alfonso Bonafede will remain justice chief and Giulia Grillo health minister, while Democrats Roberto Gualtieri and Lorenzo Guerini are predicted to head respectively the ministries of finance and defence.
Prior to that, Conte announced his resignation on 20 August, thus terminating the 14-month-long coalition government led by Lega party headed by Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Matteo Salvini and Deputy Prime Minister and Economic Minister Luigi di Maio from the Five Star Movement. Since then, Mattarella has been engaged in consultations with all political parties to find a solution to the crisis, which under Italian law can come out in one of two ways: forming a new government or calling for a snap general election. Salvini has actively pushed for the latter scenario.
