Italian comedian and political enfant terrible Beppe Grillo announced his candidacy for Italy’s Democratic Party yesterday, says Italy’s La Repubblica. 

Described as an Italian Michael Moore in a 2008 article in The New Yorker, Grillo has vowed to restore ‘dignity to the Republic with the application of the Clean Up Parliament popular laws and freedom of information with the withdrawal of the State TV concessions from every political entity, starting with Silvio Berlusconi.” 

Yet, in order to run in the party’s primary, Grillo must first apply for party membership.

According to La Repubblica, a high-ranking member of the Democratic Party, Maurizio Migliavacca, has already excluded the possibility of Beppe Grillo’s joining the party. “He does not have the necessary prerequisites to be a party member,” said Migliavacca.

But other party members have welcomed Grillo’s membership citing his inclusion on the primary ballot as a sign of flourishing democracy within the party ranks.