The Elections of 2013: A Tsunami with No Winners

The elections of 24 and 25 February 2013 occurred at the end of a legislative term that began with hopes of stability, only to develop into an ever-deeper political and economic crisis. For this reason, their outcome demonstrated a potential for partisan and electoral change unparalleled in other long-standing democracies. Voter participation dropped by five percentage points from the previous elections, reaching an all-time low. Electoral volatility was higher than ever before. The appearance of new parties, especially the M5S, upset the pre-existing voting patterns. The old bipolar setup of electoral competition was replaced by a new three-and-a-half coalitions/parties setting. The cycle of party alternation established in the Second Republic was interrupted.