From wearing a bandana to cover his plastic surgery, to consorting with underage escort girls at his infamous Bunga Bunga parties, former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi had weathered all storms which came his way.

However, a corruption case brought against him, of which he was found guilty, saw him being unceremoniously booted out of the Italian senate on Wednesday night. The 77-year-old three-time Prime Minister was convicted of tax fraud in October 2012 over deals his firm Mediaset made to purchase TV rights to US films. The verdict was upheld in August.

A Senate vote barred Berlusconi from running or holding office for at least six years under a 2012 law applied to anyone sentenced to more than two years in prison.  He will have to serve a one-year sentence, probably under house arrest or by doing community service because of his age. He has also been convicted of paying for sex with an underage prostitute and faces a seven-year prison term and lifetime ban from holding public office trying to cover up his liaisons with her, but plans to appeal.

But in effect, he has already said that he will be leading an election campaign, even though he would not be able to run for parliament.

The longevity and durability of Berlusconi is impressive. He first won elections in Italy in 1994 after having formed the party Forza Italia. Only a few weeks ago, he was going to try and challenge Enrico Letta’s government, but backed down at the last minute when he realized he would not be able to garner enough support.

But as a cold snap whipped through Italy as the vote was being taken, it was clear that Berlusconi still enjoys the support of many Italians. "We are here on a bitter day, a day of mourning for democracy," he said, and the cheers from the crowd went up.

Political analysts in Italy said that while he retains core voters, to maintain them he will have to "be aggressive, be his usual Berlusconi" and not appear to be weakening, even physically due to age.”

Seeking to reinvigorate himself politically, Berlusconi has also relaunched the Forza Italia party that catapulted him to power in 1994. Malta had good relations with Italy during his different tenures. The Italian Protocol funding was given to Malta under successive Berlusconi governments, which helped boost our infrastructure. The Italians also stationed a military mission in Malta which has helped improve the training and capabilities of the Armed Forces of Malta. But there were also rougher seas to navigate. For example, there was a spat in 2009, when then Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi launched a scathing attack and officially protested when Italy refused to take in 140 migrants that were rescued off Lampedusa.

Love him or hate him, you cannot deny that Berlusconi was a character. But whether or not he has the ability, approaching 80 years of age, to comeback and become a force in Italian politics remains to be seen. He will certainly fancy his chances, but if he was the proverbial cat with nine lives, then he is certainly approaching – if not gone over his quota. Nevertheless, we can still say that there will be interesting times ahead.