A member of Forza Italia, she was the President of Calabria from 15 February 2020 until her death eight months later.

From May to December 2013 Santelli was undersecretary at the Ministry of Labour in the Letta Cabinet, until Forza Italia withdrew its support from the government.

[2] Since 2013 Santelli has been the regional coordinator of Forza Italia in Calabria and has been deputy mayor of Cosenza from 2016 to 2019.

In December 2019 she became the centre-right candidate for President of Calabria at the 2020 Calabrian regional election,[4] which she won with around 55% of votes.

[5] On 15 October 2020, Santelli was found dead at her home, aged 51, after suffering a heart attack and internal bleeding.