Bill Emmott
Italy has just elected a new President – by giving the incumbent, Sergio Mattarella, a second term of office. An outbreak of ‘business as usual'? No, says Bill Emmott – the election has exposed deep divisions in party politics which could have ramifications for government stability Read more
Fred Paxton
Italian populists’ focus on ‘the will of the people’ has frequently contradicted their ideological priorities towards migration, Fred Paxton and Andrea Pettrachin find. The perception of local attitudes to immigration and issue salience are the determining factors in how populists in local government make their decisions Read more
Andrea Capati
The Italian Five Star Movement is considering joining the ‘Socialists and Democrats’ grouping in the European Parliament. Andrea Capati and Marco Improta argue that this pro-Europeanist turn owes much to the party’s recent experience in government. It also marks a further stage in the ‘normalisation’ of the Five Star Movement Read more
Damian Raess
Surprisingly, left governments adopted more conservative fiscal policies than right governments in recent economic crises. Governments did not choose these policies freely; rather, the financial markets imposed them. Nonetheless, argues Damian Raess, they appear to have dire electoral consequences: left-leaning voters are increasingly voting with their feet Read more
Michelangelo Vercesi
Italy is unmatched in Western Europe in the scale of its electoral support for populists. Michelangelo Vercesi argues that this exceptionality, combined with the strategic adaptation of political entrepreneurs to different territorial political traditions, is a legacy of how the unitary state formed Read more
Daniele Albertazzi
Mario Draghi’s new government enjoys broad support in both Italian parliamentary chambers. But Matteo Salvini's League is likely to make its life difficult. Daniele Albertazzi and Davide Pellegrino speculate that Salvini’s party will likely keep one foot in and one foot out of government Read more
Martin Bull
The Italian President’s invitation to Mario Draghi to form the next government is the fourth time since 1994 that the country has resorted to a technician to get itself out of a hole dug by the parties’ failure to agree on a political government, writes Martin Bull. This has connotations that go beyond the current crisis, representing a damning indictment of Italy’s model of party government Read more
Luciano Bardi
Italians have voted in favour of a populist proposal to reduce, quite drastically, the number of parliamentarians. The result of this referendum was never seriously in doubt, writes Luciano Bardi, yet its ramifications raise fundamental questions about the democratic health of Italy’s political system – and whether it can ever be reformed Read more
The Loop
Cutting-edge analysis showcasing the work of the political science discipline at its best.
