87 Italy Government Facts: Election, Legal, Economics, And More

Modern Italy was established on March 17, 1861, under the Unification of Italy, also known as the Risorgimento.

During this period, the country was divided into the Kingdom of Two Sicilies and the Italian Peninsula under King Emmanuel II, previously known as the King of Sardinia. Today, Italy is a successful country with the fifth-highest population density in all of Europe.

The country has several minority groups, with Bolzano Province's German-speaking residents being the smallest minority. Other communities like the Greek, French, Albanian, and Ladino can also be found residing in Italy. Nearly 99% of the population is Catholic. All religions are treated equally, this is due to laws passed in the Constitution of Italy.

Italy also joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, better known as NATO post World War II and would go on to become a major backing force in the European Union.

Facts About The Government Of Italy

Scroll down to read some facts and history about the magnificent government of Italy.

• Modern Italy was birthed on March 17, 1861, under the Unification of Italy, also known as the Risorgimento.
• During this period, the country was divided into the Kingdom of Two Sicilies and the Italian Peninsula under King Emmanuel II, previously known as the King of Sardinia.
• Today, Italy is culturally, politically, and economically a rich country and has the fifth-highest population density in all of Europe.
• The country has several minority groups, with the Bolzano Province's German-speaking residents being the small minority.
• Other communities like the Greek, French, Albanian, and Ladino can also be found residing in Italy.
• Nearly 99% of the population is Catholic. All religions are treated equally, this is due to laws passed in the Constitution of Italy.
• The southern tip of the Italian foreland was occupied by Greek settlers in the eighth and seventh centuries B.C. Mainlands in the north of the country were inhabited by Romans and Etruscans.
• The peninsula was united under the Roman Republic, which would also go on to control neighboring islands by the third Century B.C.
• With the demise of the Roman Empire, Italy's reign changed hands frequently and the region was divided into small states or kingdoms that fought amongst themselves. This would later cause foreign powers to enter the country.
• The peninsula was made into a battleground on several occasions, the Pope who ruled central Italy would often clash with the Holy Roman Emperors for the right to rule the country.
• These rivalries would slowly settle down with the commercial growth of Italian cities in the 11th century.
• The Renaissance also influenced changes in medieval political rivalries. In the 16th century, the Renaissance promoted the ideas of a unified Italy, and in the 19th century, a nationalist movement grew and reunified Italy, excluding Rome in 1860.
• Rome was brought into the unification in 1870. From 1870-to 1922, Italy was under a constitutional monarchy and a parliament was installed.
• On December 11, 1947, the constituent assemble obtained the right to work, and following its inception, the Italian Consitution was established and took effect on January 1, 1948.
• Italy also joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, better known as NATO post World War II and would go on to become a major backing force in the European Union.
• The Italian Constitution express ideologies of fundamental principles, the right and duties of citizens, and the organization of a republic. These ideologies help in laying out the social, political, civil, and economic rights of Italians.
• Since 1945, Italy saw frequent changes in the government. The rise of the Christian Democratic Party saw the dominant party bring a period of stability to the political concerns of the country.
• From the years 1992-1997, Italy faced several issues with Italian voters who were disappointed by the massive government debt, corruption, past political paralysis, and the influence of organized crime in politics.
• Italy would demand reforms in the country and in 1993, voters endorsed changes which included; the movement from a proportional to a majorly majoritarian mode of the electoral system and the disbandments of some ministries.
• With these changes in effect, big political parties would undergo significant changes, and the new alignment of power towards new political forms emerged in the 1994 national elections.
• After Romano Prodi was appointed the Prime Minister of Italy in 1996, his government's reign was the third-longest reign of any government in Italy. He was defeated in 1998 by Massimo D'Alema, the leader of the Democratic Party of the Left.
• D'Alema's coalition consisted of members of the Italian People's Party (PPI), the newly formed Italian Communist Party, and the Democratic Party of the Left (PDS), other small parties were also involved.
• Italy became a democratic republic on June 2, 1946, after the monarch in the country was repealed by referendum.
• The Italian Constitution was implemented on January 1, 1948, and saw the birth of the bicameral Parliament of Italy that included the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.
• The Italian state is centralized and the representatives of each province are appointed by the central government and answer only to them.
• The Constitutional Court also grants limited governing powers to 20 regions.
• Special autonomous statutes are followed in the regions of Sardinia, Trentino-Alto Adige, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Sicily and Valle d'Aosta.
• The remaining 15 regions were founded in 1970 and voted for their regional councils. Regional governments in Italy paved the way for decentralization and today, many regional governments seek further powers.
• Italian politics is based on the concept of centralized governments with the Senate and Chamber of Deputies being two of the most important parts of the bicameral parliament of the country.
• Both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate's approval are required in the Italian politics scene for a bill to be passed.
• The Italian Parliament is incorporated into the legislative branch of the Italian state and it consists of the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies.
• The senators including former presidents of the country and other members are usually appointed by the President of the country based on their extraordinary merits.
• The Senate is made up of 315 members and a cutoff age of 40 years is applied to stand in elections for members of the Senate.
• The Chamber of Deputies is composed of 630 members. Italian citizens that are over the age of 25 can take part in elections of regional governments or the central government.
• The Constitutional Court of Italy came into practice post World War II.
• The Italian president is elected through a secret ballot by regional representatives and the Parliament.
• Since both the Chamber of Deputies and Senate have five-year terms each, they cannot re-elect. A president's term is of seven years.
• Giorgio Napolitano is the only person to have been the president twice. He took control of the country in 2013 to fight the political crisis and the failing economy of Italy.
• Italian citizens over the age of 50 can stand for elections but relinquish their position from other public offices before they become the President.
• The President of Italy has key duties like choosing the Prime Minister after a general election, calling referendums, calling for elections, and putting laws into effect.
• After the events of World War I, countries longed for strong leadership and national unity, with Italy being no exception.
• Italy is a unitary state. Unified Italy was known to be created in 1861 and lasted more than half a century.

Election Process In Italy

Italian citizens aged 18 and over can cast their votes in elections for the Chamber of Deputies. Read below to know more!

• To cast votes for the Senate, the minimum age is set to 25.
• Out of all members of the European Union, the turnout in Italy for elections is the highest with an estimated 80% of the electorate for the parliamentary elections in the country.
• For more than 50 years, the electoral system in Italy was based on proportional representation in which seats are rewarded to political parties based on the proportional votes they received.
• Various changes were made to the country's legislation and the referenda between 1993 and 1995.
• The Senate and the Chamber of Deputies were elected through a combination of plurality and proportionality.
• 75% of the seats in the two sections are awarded to the individual candidates from their representative districts who won with the biggest margins.
• The remaining 25% of the seats are awarded to representatives from the list of parties on a proportional basis.
• In regional elections in Italy, voters are allowed to cast two ballots.
• The first ballot is for 80% of the seats available in the regional council which is granted on a proportional basis.
• The second ballot is the plurality vote in which whichever regional coalition wins, it is granted all the remaining seats and the role of the presidency in the country.
• Provincial elections allow one vote and seats are divided based on the proportion of votes each party gets and if a single party gets more than 50% of the votes, then the presidency of the country goes to the leader of the winning party.
• If the result is a draw, a run-off election is held between the two leading lists and the winner takes 60% of seats.

Facts About Political Parties In Italy

Get to know the political parties of Italy here!

• From the end of World War II until the early 1990s, Italy was dominated by two parties, the Italian Communist Party and the Christian Democratic Party.
• These parties were often helped by other parties like the neo-fascist Italian Social Movement of the right and the Italian Socialist Party of the left.
• The Italian party system transformed radically as a result of national and international events, the termination of corrupt officials, and the fall of communism only hurried the change.
• 1994 saw the rise of three particular parties in Italy in the form of the Forza Italia (FI), the National Alliance (Alleanza Nazionale/AN), and the Northern League (Lega Nord/LN) (formed in 1991).
• Between 1992 and 1997, Italy's political landscape transformed with the shift from proportional to a majoritarian system of voting, and a law was passed that required representatives to achieve a minimum 4% nation vote to stand in elections.
• Soon many political parties changed themselves and parties like the Christian Democratic Party dissolved.
• Other major parties saw their support dwindle and new motions from former Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi's party Forza Italia, gained support around the country.
• The Italian People's Party, National Alliance, Italian Communist Party, Northern League, and the Communist Renewal were some of the powerhouse parties of the past.

Legal And Economic System Of Italy

Italy is one of the major economies in the European Union and trails only Germany for production in the industrial sector. Read about the legal and economic systems of Italy here!

• The country ranks third in export, trailing France by a small margin in fields of pharmaceutical products, automobile industry, and mechanical engineering.
• The debt procured by Italy's government has been stagnant because of the country's poor economic growth over the last 20 years, this is caused by the 66 other governments taking control of the country since World War II.
• Since 2007, the public debt in the country has risen and reached 131% of the country's GDP in the year 2017.
• With the introduction of the euro in 1999, Italy fell behind countries like the U.K. (in 2002) and France (in 2005) in per capita purchasing power.
• Italy led the U.K. and France in 1969 and 1979 respectively in the same sector. By the year 2019, the per capita income of Italy fell lower than 20% that of Germany's per capita income.
• The usage of the euro was seen as the stagnating factor of Italy as the euro was expensive for Italy compared to Germany.
• Italy's economy is often powered by the industrial north, which is the home of various private companies and the southern part of the country is home to less-developed, agricultural sectors that are heavily subsidized and have a history of underdevelopment and unemployment.
• Italy's economy is driven forward thanks to the country's exports of high-quality consumer goods that are manufactured by medium and small-sized enterprises that are owned by a line of high-ranking families of the country.
• The legal system of Italy is slowed down due to the enforcements of self-interest and bloated bureaucracy that often intervenes in the functioning of the legal system and delays in court procedures undermine the government's enforcement.
• Organize crime and corruption are significant issues in Italy and often impact the social and economic growth in parts of Italy that are left unchecked.

Did you know?

Discover more interesting facts about the Italian government here.

• The Italian Constitution and its bicameral Parliament often make use of referenda that are held to repeal executive orders and laws and need five regional councils or 500,000 signatories.
• Referenda have been called into action since 1970, and have helped in civic and institutional reforms.
• Some important referenda held by the Constitution consist of laws on electoral reform, nuclear power, and common issues like divorce.
• The President and the Prime Minister of Italy often report to the Judiciary Branch and the Parliament which consist of the Supreme Court of Cassation, Constitutional Court, and The Corte d'Assise (Court of Assizes).
• Italy has had 66 governments since the end of the Second World War. Each reign has lasted an average of 1.14 years.
• The Prime Minister is known as the President of the Council in Italy, as they hold executive powers in the country.
• The President of Italy is elected for a seven-year term and serves as the Commander-in-Chief during times of war.
• The Democratic Republic from the Italian government was founded in 1948 and consists of the judicial subdivisions, executive, legislative, and a President or Head of State.
• Italy has a functioning healthcare system that offers universal coverage to its citizens.
• Legal citizens are allowed to enroll for full coverage of the annual fee and employees of companies, are provided healthcare by the employers.
• Private clinics, specialists, hospitals are all available for an affordable fee and private health insurance is also provided to the citizens.