The Italian Party System between Parties and Coalitions

This article discusses the changes in the Italian party system that took place across three elections (1994, 1996 and 2001) following the adoption of the new mixed electoral system. From the point of view of the candidates, parties and coalitions contesting the elections, the configuration is not yet stabilised. From the point of view of voters’ behaviour, volatility remains high and strategic choices are notably limited. These problems notwithstanding, the article concludes that the system has become completely bipolar. A number of underlying questions are also discussed: does the bipoplar format prevail across all districts? How competitive are the single-member districts? Is political competition centripetal?