The family later returned to Italy and at a young age, Sandro joined the Italian Communist Youth Federation, soon becoming its secretary in Lunigiana.

He gained a laurea in philosophy from the University of Pisa with a dissertation on Leonardo Valazzana, precursor of the Augustinian order and opponent of Girolamo Savonarola.

Bondi returned the great trust accorded him by Berlusconi over the years by becoming one of his main supporters, publicly proclaiming his devotion and fidelity to him on several occasions,[4] as well as in poems he composed and read on television programmes, which were a major target for his critics and for satirists.

In 2008 he was made culture minister in the fourth cabinet of Berlusconi, relinquishing his post as national co-ordinator of Forza Italia to Denis Verdini.

During his tenure of the ministry, he announced the appointment of a special commissioner for the ruins at Pompeii[5] and was censured for criticising modern art and architecture.