List of political parties in Italy

Political parties in Italy are numerous and since World War II no party has ever gained enough support to govern alone. Parties thus form political alliances and coalition governments.

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In the 2018 general election three groupings obtained most of the votes and most of the seats in the two houses of the Italian Parliament: a centre-right coalition, composed of the League, Forza Italia, the Brothers of Italy and minor allies; the anti-establishment Five Star Movement; a centre-left coalition, composed of the Democratic Party and minor allies.

History

Between 1945 and 1994, Italian politics was dominated by two major parties: Christian Democracy, the main party of government, and the Italian Communist Party, the main opposition party. The other opposition party was the post-fascist Italian Social Movement. During its almost fifty years in government, Christian Democracy chose its coalition partners among four parties: the Italian Socialist Party, the Italian Democratic Socialist Party, the Italian Republican Party and the Italian Liberal Party.

For 46 consecutive years, the Christian Democrats led the government except for five years. Between 1983 and 1991, they led a coalition government with the Socialists, the Republicans, the Democratic Socialists and the Liberals. That was the time when several northern regional parties demanding autonomy organised themselves at the regional level. In 1991 they federated themselves into the Northern League, which became the country's fourth largest party in the 1992 general election.

In 1992–94, the political system was shaken by a series of corruption scandals known collectively as Tangentopoli. These events led to the disappearance of the five parties of government. Consequently, the Communists, who had evolved to become Democratic Party of the Left in 1991, and the post-fascists, who launched National Alliance in 1994, gained strength. Following the 1994 general election, media tycoon Silvio Berlusconi became Prime Minister at the head of a coalition composed mainly of three parties: his brand-new party Forza Italia (joined by several members of the former mainstream parties), National Alliance and the Northern League.

Between 1996 and 2008, Italian political parties were organised into two big coalitions, the centre-right Pole for Freedoms (which was renamed House of Freedoms after the re-entry of the Northern League in 2000) and The Olive Tree (part of the new, broader coalition The Union in 2005) on the centre-left. The latter governed from 1996 to 2001 and again between 2006 and 2008, while the House of Freedoms was in government between 2001 and 2006. In 2008 The Union ceased to exist as the newly-founded Democratic Party decided to break the alliance with its left-wing partners, notably including the Communist Refoundation Party. On the centre-right, Forza Italia and National Alliance merged to form The People of Freedom, which continued the alliance with the Northern League and won the 2008 general election.

In the 2013 general election the party system was fragmented in four groupings: the centre-left composed of the Democratic Party and Left Ecology Freedom; the traditional centre-right alliance between The People of Freedom and the Northern League; Beppe Grillo's Five Star Movement; and a new centrist coalition around Mario Monti's Civic Choice. In November 2013 The People of Freedom was dissolved and merged into the new Forza Italia, provoking the split of the New Centre-Right. In December 2016 Left Ecology Freedom was dissolved in order to take part to the formation of Italian Left. In February 2017 splinters from the Democratic Party and Italian Left launched the Article One, while in March the New Centre-Right was transformed into Popular Alternative.

In the 2018 general election the major groupings were reduced to three: the centre-right composed of the Northern League (which was the coalition's largest party for the first time), Forza Italia, Brothers of Italy and minor allies; the Five Star Movement (which was the most voted party); the centre-left composed of the Democratic Party and minor allies. Free and Equal, a new left-wing joint list whose main members were Article One and Italian Left, came a distant fourth.

Active parties

Coalitions

Active coalitions having garnered at least 10% in a general/European election:

Major parties

Active parties having garnered at least 4% in the latest nationwide election or being represented by at least 30 MPs or 5 MEPs:

Minor parties

Active parties having garnered at least 1% in a general/European election, having elected at least one MP/MEP with their own lists or having been represented by at least 5 MPs, 2 MEPs or in 3 different Regional Councils:

Regional parties

Active parties having garnered at least 2% in a regional election (or in a general/European election at the regional level), having elected at least one regional councillor with their own lists or having been represented by at least 2 regional councillors:

Aosta Valley
Piedmont
Lombardy
Trentino
South Tyrol
Veneto
Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Emilia-Romagna
Liguria
Tuscany
Marche
Umbria
Campania
Apulia
Basilicata
Sicily
Sardinia

Parties of Italians abroad

Active parties having garnered at least 15% in one constituency in a general election or having been represented by at least one MP:

Parliamentary groups

Parliamentary groups not directly connected to a political party or coalition of political parties:

  1. The group, active in the Senate since 2001, has been known as "UDC, SVP and Autonomies" in 2008–2013 and "For the Autonomies – PSI – MAIE" since 2013.
  2. The group's official name is "Europeanists – MAIE – Democratic Centre".

Former parties

Former coalitions

Former coalitions having garnered at least 10% in a general/European election:

Former major parties

Former parties having garnered at least 4% in a general/European election or having been represented by at least 30 MPs or 5 MEPs:

Former minor parties

Former parties having garnered at least 1% in a general/European election, having elected at least one MP/MEP with their own lists or having been represented by at least 5 MPs, 2 MEPs or in 3 different Regional Councils:

Former regional parties

Former parties having garnered at least 2% in a regional election (or in a general/European election at the regional level), having elected at least one regional councillor with their own lists or having been represented by at least 2 regional councillors:

Aosta Valley
Piedmont
Lombardy
Liguria
  • New Liguria (Liguria Nuova)
Trentino
South Tyrol
Veneto
Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Tuscany
Marche
Lazio
  • Italian Hearts (Cuoritaliani)
Molise
Campania
Apulia
Basilicata
  • The Democrats (I Democratici)
Calabria
Sicily
Sardinia

Former parties of Italians abroad

Former parties having garnered at least 15% in one constituency in a general election or having been represented by at least one MP:

Former parliamentary groups

Parliamentary groups not directly connected to a political party or coalition of political parties:

See also

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