Calderoli, a senior member of the anti-immigration League party, received the 18-month suspended sentence on Monday for racial hate speech directed at Cécile Kyenge, who served as integration minister under Enrico Letta’s government from 2013 to 2014.
Calderoli reportedly called Congolese-born Kyenge an orangutan at a rally in July 2013.
Calderoli argued that the comment was “playful banter”.
In Italy, rulings are not considered final until the end of the appeal process, and prison sentences under two years are usually suspended, according to Italian news agency ANSA.
Though the decision handed down by the court in Bergamo won’t see Calderoli sent to prison, Kyenge said it was an “encouraging result for those who fight against the plague of racism in Italy”.
Kyenge didn’t stand as a civil plaintiff in the trial and won’t get compensation for damages.
While Calderoli’s comments were widely condemned at the time, the legal process has proved lengthy.
In 2015, Calderoli’s colleagues in the Senate passed a motion granting him immunity from prosecution, backing his argument that the comment towards Kyenge was purely political.
Last year, however, Italy’s Constitutional Court ruled that Calderoli should be held accountable for the racial slander.
Calderoli is renowned for making inflammatory remarks about immigrants, Muslims and homosexuals in the past.
Despite this, he remains a member of the Senate.
Kyenge left the Italian government in 2014 and now serves as a member of the European Parliament.
Italy has not had any ministers of colour since then.
