1994 Italian general election

none 1994 Italian general election Italy parliamentary no 1992 Italian general election 1992 Legislature XI of Italy 1996 Italian general election 1996 Legislature XII of Italy All 630 seats in the Chamber of Deputies316 seats needed for a majorityAll 315 elective seats in the Senate163 seats needed for a majorityThis takes into account the Senators for life, which held 10 seats at the time the election took place. 27–28 March 1994 48,135,041 (C Chamber of Deputies)41,795,730 (S Senate) 41,546,290 (C Chamber of Deputies)86.3% (1.1 pp) 35,873,375 (S Senate)85.8% (1.0 pp) Constituency vote % and swing Party vote % and swing Silvio Berlusconi 1994 (cropped).jpg 120 120 160 Silvio Berlusconi Forza Italia (1994) Pole of Freedoms / Good Government 0A6BE1 26 January 1994 Roma Centrale (C Chamber of Deputies) 366 (C Chamber of Deputies) / 156 (S Senate) 17,746,612 (C Chamber of Deputies)14,110,705 (S Senate) 46.1% (C Chamber of Deputies)42.6% (S Senate) 16,585,516 (C Chamber of Deputies) 42.8% (C Chamber of Deputies) Achille Occhetto.jpg 120 120 160 Achille Occhetto Democratic Party of the Left Progressives D90000 1 February 1994 Borgo Panigale (C Chamber of Deputies) 213 (C Chamber of Deputies) / 122 (S Senate) 12.632,680 (C Chamber of Deputies)10,881,320 (S Senate) 32.8% (C Chamber of Deputies)32.9% (S Senate) 13,308,244 (C Chamber of Deputies) 34.3% (C Chamber of Deputies) MEP SEGNI Mariotto (cropped).jpg 120 120 160 Mario Segni Segni Pact Pact for Italy FFD700 5 January 1994 Sardegna (C Chamber of Deputies)Segni ran also in the single-member constituency of Sassari but he lost, being then elected in the closed list proportional representation system. 46 (C Chamber of Deputies) / 31 (S Senate) 6,019,038 (C Chamber of Deputies)5,519,090 (S Senate) 15.6% (C Chamber of Deputies)16.7% (S Senate) 6,098,986 (C Chamber of Deputies) 15.8% (C Chamber of Deputies) 400px Results of the single-member constituencies in the Chamber of Deputies (left) and Senate (right). Prime Minister Prime Minister after the election Carlo Azeglio Ciampi Independent Silvio Berlusconi Forza Italia (1994) The 1994 Italian general election was held on 27 and 28 March 1994 to elect members of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic for the 12th legislature. Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right coalition won a large majority in the Chamber of Deputies but just missed winning a majority in the Senate. The Italian People's Party, the official heir of Christian Democracy party, which had dominated Italian politics for almost half a century, was decimated. It took only 29 seats versus 206 for the DC two years earlier—easily the worst defeat a sitting government in Italy has ever suffered enough, and one of the worst ever suffered by a Western European governing party. New electoral system A new electoral system was introduced for these elections following the 1993 Italian referendum, which repealed the "supermajority clause" concerning Senate elections. Previously, this clause had effectively resulted in Senate elections being conducted using a system close to pure proportional representation. Under the new system, 75% of the Senate seats were elected through a plurality voting system in single-member constituencies, while the remaining 25% were allocated proportionally in a compensatory manner. This reform significantly changed the structure of parliamentary elections by introducing a mixed electoral system. Parliament also passed a new electoral law for the Chamber of Deputies in order to align it more closely with the Senate's electoral rules. Under this law, 75% of the seats were filled through plurality voting in single-member districts, while the remaining 25% were distributed proportionally using a supplementary system with a minimum electoral threshold of 4% of the vote. The new electoral system became widely known as the Mattarellum, named after Sergio Mattarella, who was the main proponent of the reform. Background Mani pulite Political career of Silvio Berlusconi In 1992, the five pro-Western governing parties (Christian Democracy, the Italian Socialist Party, the Italian Democratic Socialist Party, the Italian Republican Party, and the Italian Liberal Party) lost much of their electoral strength almost overnight due to a large number of judicial investigations concerning the financial corruption of many of their foremost members. This led to a general expectation that upcoming elections would be won by the Democratic Party of the Left, the heir of the former Italian Communist Party, and its Progressives coalition unless there was an alternative. On 26 January 1994, the media magnate Silvio Berlusconi announced his decision to enter politics, ("enter the field", in his own words) presenting his own political party, Forza Italia, on a platform focused on defeating "the communists". His political aim was to convince the voters of the Pentapartito, the usual five governing parties who were shocked and confused by Mani Pulite scandals, that Forza Italia offered both novelty and the continuation of the pro-Western free-market policies followed by Italy since the end of World War II. Shortly after he decided to enter the political arena, investigators into the Mani Pulite affair were said to be close to issuing warrants for the arrest of Berlusconi and senior executives of his business group. During his years of political career, Berlusconi repeatedly stated that the Mani Pulite investigations were led by communist prosecutors who wanted to establish a Soviet-style government in Italy. http://courses.wcupa.edu/rbove/eco343/060compecon/Europe%20West/Italy/060330berlusc.txt As Italy Votes, Golden Career Of Berlusconi Is at Crossroads Wall Street Journal 30 March 2006 http://www.theamericanmag.com/article.php?article=385&p=2 Italian Election, The Prelude The American 1 April 2006 2012-08-20 https://web.archive.org/web/20140222014325/http://www.theamericanmag.com/article.php?article=385&p=2 2014-02-22 dead In order to win the election, Berlusconi formed two separate electoral alliances: the Pole of Freedoms (Polo delle Libertà) with the Northern League (Lega Nord) in northern Italian districts, and another, the Pole of Good Government (Polo del Buon Governo), with the post-fascist National Alliance (Alleanza Nazionale; heir to the neo-fascist Italian Social Movement), in central and southern regions. Griffin Roger Roger Griffin AN's ideological tap-root is still thrust deep into historical Fascism ... retaining many Fascist core values The 'Post-Fascism' of the Alleanza Nazionale: A Case Study in Ideological Morphology Journal of Political Ideologies 1 2 123–145 1996 10.1080/13569319608420733 In a shrewd pragmatic move, he did not ally with the latter in the North because the League disliked them. As a result, Forza Italia was allied with two parties that were not allied with each other. Berlusconi launched a massive campaign of electoral advertisements on his three TV networks. He subsequently won the election, with Forza Italia garnering 21% of the popular vote, the highest percentage of any single party, narrowly ahead of the Democratic Party of the Left, which finished less than 1% behind.http://elezionistorico.interno.it/liste.php?tp=C&dt=27/03/1994&cta=I&tpEnte=A&tpSeg=C&numEnte=0&sut1=&sut2=&sut3=&descEnte=&descArea=ITALIA&codTipoSegLeader= Elezioni della Camera dei Deputati del 27 Marzo 1994 it Italian Chamber of Deputies dead https://web.archive.org/web/20090612091446/http://elezionistorico.interno.it/liste.php?tp=C&dt=27%2F03%2F1994&cta=I&tpEnte=A&tpSeg=C&numEnte=0&sut1=&sut2=&sut3=&descEnte=&descArea=ITALIA&codTipoSegLeader= 2009-06-12 One of the most significant promises that he made in order to secure victory was that his government would create "one million more jobs". On the other side, the center-left Progressives led by Achille Occhetto, also called "the Joyful War Machine", was composed by the two party born from the dissolution of the Italian Communist Party: the Democratic Party of the Left and Communist Refoundation Party. Since the alliance was sure of victory, its campaign was focused on criticizing the media power of Berlusconi. Main coalitions and parties CoalitionParty Main ideologySeats Party leaderCoalition leader C Chamber of Deputies S Senate of the Republic TotalAlliance of Progressives Democratic Party of the Left (PDS) Democratic socialism 106 65 171 Achille OcchettoAchille Occhetto Italian Socialist Party (PSI) Social democracy 91 50 141 Ottaviano Del Turco Communist Refoundation Party (PRC) Communism 33 20 53 Fausto Bertinotti Federation of the Greens (FdV) Green politics 16 4 20 Carlo Ripa di Meana The Network (LR) Anti-corruption politics 12 3 17 Leoluca Orlando Democratic Alliance (AD) Social liberalism Willer Bordon Social Christians (CS)Running with the Democratic Party of the Left Christian left Pierre Carniti Socialist Rebirth (RS)Running with the Italian Socialist Party Social democracy Giorgio BenvenutoPact for Italy Italian People's Party (PPI) Christian democracy 179 112 291 Mino MartinazzoliMario Segni Segni Pact (PS) Liberalism Mario SegniPole of Freedoms –Pole of Good Government Northern League (LN)Pole of Freedoms only Regionalism 50 25 75 Umberto BossiSilvio Berlusconi National Alliance (AN)Pole of Good Government only National conservatism 34 16 50 Gianfranco Fini Christian Democratic Centre (CCD)fn1 Confederation with Forza Italia Christian democracy 24 0 24 Pier Ferdinando Casini Forza Italia (FI) Liberal conservatism Silvio Berlusconi Union of the Centre (UdC)fn1 Liberalism Raffaele Costa Liberal Democratic Pole (PLD)fn1 Liberalism Adriano TesoPannella List (LP) Libertarianism 6 0 6Marco Pannella Results Berlusconi's alliance won a decisive victory over the Progressives, becoming the first centre-right coalition to win a general election in Italy since the end of the Second World War. Berlusconi's coalition won in the main regions of Italy: the strongest parties in Northern Italy were the regionalist Northern League and Forza Italia, which was also able to win in all provinces of Sicily, while the National Alliance received more votes in Southern Italy. The Alliance of Progressives confirmed its predominance in the Red Belt regions of Central Italy, and in the South. Chamber of Deputies Overall results + ← Summary of the 27 March 1994 Chamber of Deputies election results → center|300px Results by party 300px Results by coalitionCoalitionPartyProportionalFirst-past-the-postTotal seats +/–Votes % Seats Votes % SeatsPole of Freedoms –Pole of Good GovernmentForza Italia (FI)8,136,13521.01306 out of the 30 MPs elected on the Forza Italia list were members of the Christian Democratic Centre.17,746,61246.0987111Including 6 deputies of the Reformers, 4 deputies of the Union of the Centre (UdC) and 2 deputies of the Liberal Democratic Pole (PLD).NewChristian Democratic Centre (CCD)2127NewNational Alliance (AN)5,214,13313.4723Emiddio Novi, elected in Campania for National Alliance, was member of Forza Italia, and he joined his party after the election.87110+75 Northern League (LN)3,235,2488.3611Andrea Merlotti, elected in Lombardy for the Northern League, was member of Forza Italia, and he joined his party after the election.107118+62Total seats64 302366–Alliance of ProgressivesDemocratic Party of the Left (PDS)7,881,64620.3638Fabiano Crucianelli, elected in Latium for the PDS, was member of the Communist Refoundation Party, and he joined his party after the election.12.632,68032.8187125Including 8 deputies of the Social Christians party.+17 Communist Refoundation Party (PRC)2,343,9466.05112738+4 Federation of the Greens (FdV)1,047,2682.7001111−5 Italian Socialist Party (PSI)849,4292.1901515Including 1 deputy of the Socialist Rebirth.−77 The Network (LR)719,8411.86088−4Democratic Alliance (AD)456,1141.1801616NewTotal seats49 164213–Pact for ItalyItalian People's Party (PPI)4,287,17211.07296,019,03815.63433−146Segni Pact (PS)1,811,8144.6813013NewTotal seats42 446–South Tyrolean People's Party (SVP)231,8420.600188,0170.4933±0Southern Action League (LAM)59,8730.15046,8200.1311+1 Aosta Valley (VdA)043,7000.1111±0Total630– Detailed results more detailed breakdown of "others" August 2022 +First-past-the-postParty or coalitionVotes%Seats Alliance of Progressives (AdP) 12,632,680 32.81 164 Pole of Freedoms (PdL) 8,767,720 22.77 164 Pact for Italy (PpI) 6,019,038 15.63 4 Pole of Good Government (PdBG) 5,732,890 14.89 129 National Alliance (AN) 2,566,848 6.67 8 Forza Italia (FI) 679,154 1.76 1 Pannella List (LP) 432,667 1.12 0 South Tyrolean People's Party (SVP) 188,017 0.49 3 Social Democracy for the Freedoms (PSDI–FDS) 147,493 0.38 0 Southern Action League (LAM) 46,820 0.13 1 Aosta Valley (VdA) 43,700 0.11 1 Others 1,247,131 3.24 0Total 38,504,158 100.00 475 Source: Ministry of the Interior +ProportionalPartyVotes%Seats Forza Italia (FI) 8,136,135 21.01 30 Democratic Party of the Left (PDS) 7,881,646 20.36 38 National Alliance (AN) 5,214,133 13.47 23 Italian People's Party (PPI) 4,287,172 11.07 29 Northern League (LN) 3,235,248 8.36 11 Communist Refoundation Party (PRC) 2,343,946 6.05 11 Segni Pact (PS) 1,811,814 4.68 13 Pannella List (LP) 1,359,283 3.51 0 Federation of the Greens (FdV) 1,047,268 2.70 0 Italian Socialist Party (PSI) 849,429 2.19 0 The Network (LR) 719,841 1.86 0 Democratic Alliance (AD) 456,114 1.18 0 South Tyrolean People's Party (SVP) 231,842 0.60 0 Social Democracy for Freedoms (PSDI–FDS) 179,495 0.46 0 Program Italy (PI) 151,328 0.39 0 Lombard Alpine League (LAL) 136,782 0.35 0 Venetian Autonomy League (LAV) 103,764 0.27 0 Southern Action League (LAM) 59,873 0.15 0 Others 517,780 1.34 0Total 38,720,893 100.00 155 Source: Ministry of the Interior Popular vote (first-past-the-post) #ddd 550px 500px AdP Alliance of Progressives 32.81 PdL Pole of Freedoms 22.77 PpI Segni Pact 15.63 PdBG Pole of Freedoms 14.89 AN National Alliance (Italy) 6.67 FI Forza Italia (1994) 1.76 Pannella Radical Party (Italy) 1.12 Others Other 4.35 Popular vote (proportional) #ddd 550px 500px FI–CCD Forza Italia (1994) 21.01 PDS Democratic Party of the Left 20.36 AN National Alliance (Italy) 13.47 PPI Italian People's Party (1994) 11.07 LN Lega Nord 8.36 PRC Communist Refoundation Party 6.05 Segni Segni Pact 4.68 Pannella Radical Party (Italy) 3.51 FdV Federation of the Greens 2.70 PSI Italian Socialist Party 2.19 Rete #DF0174 1.86 AD darkgreen 1.18 Others Other 3.56 FPTP results by constituency ConstituencyTotalseatsSeats wonPdL – PBGAdPPpIOthersAbruzzo11110Aosta Valley11Apulia3423101Basilicata514Calabria17710Campania 1251015Campania 2227123Emilia-Romagna32329Friuli-Venezia Giulia1010Lazio 132293Lazio 21111Liguria1477Lombardy 13131Lombardy 23232Lombardy 311101Marche1212Molise321Piedmont 119145Piedmont 21717Sardinia14941Sicily 120164Sicily 22121Trentino-Alto Adige853Tuscany2929Umbria77Veneto 12222Veneto 215141Total47530216445 PR results by constituency ConstituencyTotalseatsSeats wonPdL – PBGAdPPpIAbruzzo321Apulia10154Basilicata211Calabria6222Campania 18422Campania 27412Emilia-Romagna9441Friuli-Venezia Giulia3111Lazio 110163Lazio 23111Liguria6321Lombardy 110442Lombardy 211533Lombardy 34211Marche4211Molise11Piedmont 16321Piedmont 26321Sardinia4112Sicily 17322Sicily 27322Trentino-Alto Adige211Tuscany11542Umbria22Veneto 18323Veneto 25311Total155644942 Senate of the Republic Overall results + ← Summary of the 27 March 1994 Senate of the Republic election results → center|300px Results by party 300px Results by coalitionCoalitionPartyFirst-past-the-postProportional seatsTotal seats +/–Votes % SeatsPole of Freedoms – Pole of Good GovernmentNorthern League (LN)13,342,9406,570,468 votes for the Pole of Freedoms (in Northern Italy), 4,544,573 votes for the Pole of Good Government (in Southern Italy), 2,077,934 votes for National Alliance (in Northern Italy) and 149,965 votes for Forza Italia–CCD (in Abruzzo)40.3419.87% of the votes for the Pole of Freedoms, 13.74% of the votes for the Pole of Good Government, 6.28% of the votes for National Alliance and 0.45% of the votes for Forza Italia–CCD1282860+35 National Alliance (AN)48+32 Forza Italia (FI)36Including 2 senators of the Union of the Centre and 1 senator of the Reformers.New Christian Democratic Centre (CCD)12NewTotal seats156–Alliance of ProgressivesDemocratic Party of the Left (PDS)10,881,32032.90962676Including 6 senators of the Social Christians party.+12 Communist Refoundation Party (PRC)18−2Italian Socialist Party (PSI)9Including 1 senator of the Socialist Rebirth.−40Federation of the Greens (FdV)7+3 Democratic Alliance (AD)6NewThe Network (LR)6+3 Total seats122–Pact for Italy (PpI)5,519,09016.6932831−64Pannella List (LP)767,765 2.32011+1 Lombard Alpine League (LAL)246,0460.74011±0South Tyrolean People's Party (SVP)217,1370.66303±0Magris List (Magris)61,4000.19101NewAosta Valley (VdA)27,4930.08101±0Total315– Detailed results Party or coalitionVotes%SeatsFPTP Proportional Alliance of Progressives (AdP) 10,881,320 32.90 96 26Pole of Freedoms (PdL) 6,570,468 19.87 74 8Pact for Italy (PpI)5,519,09016.69328Pole of Good Government (PBG) 4,544,573 13.74 56 19National Alliance (AN) 2,077,9346.2808Pannella List (LP)767,765 2.3201Pensioners' Party (PP)250,6370.7600Lombard Alpine League (LAL)246,0460.7401South Tyrolean People's Party (SVP)217,1370.6630Venetian Autonomy League (LAV)165,3700.5000Federalist Greens (VF)100,4180.3000Sardinian Action Party (PSd'Az)88,2250.2700Natural Law Party (PLN)86,5790.2600Social Democracy for Freedoms (PSDI–FDS)80,2640.2400The League of Angela Bossi72,4550.2200Greens Greens (VV)68,2180.2100Veneto Autonomous Region Movement (MVRA)64,1490.1900Magris List (Magris)61,4000.1910Southern Action League (LAM)54,3950.1600League for Piedmont49,5050.1500Aosta Valley (VdA)27,4930.0810Others931,1432.8200Total33,074,549100.0023283Source: Ministry of the Interior Popular vote #ddd 550px 500px AdP Alliance of Progressives 32.90 PdL Pole of Freedoms 19.87 PpI Segni Pact 16.69 PBG Pole of Freedoms 13.74 AN National Alliance (Italy) 6.28 Pannella Radical Party (Italy) 2.32 Others Other 8.20 FPTP by constituency ConstituencyTotalseatsSeats wonPdL–PBGAdPPpIOthersPiedmont17125Aosta Valley11Lombardy3535Trentino-Alto Adige633Veneto1717Friuli-Venezia Giulia541Liguria624Emilia-Romagna15114Tuscany1414Umbria55Marche66Lazio21165Abruzzo55Molise22Campania227132Apulia1697Basilicata514Calabria817Sicily20173Sardinia6321Total2321289635 PR results by constituency ConstituencyTotalseatsSeats wonPpIPdL–PBGAdPOthersPiedmont6222Lombardy123162Trentino-Alto Adige11Veneto6213Friuli-Venezia Giulia211Liguria312Emilia-Romagna624Tuscany523Umbria211Marche211Lazio7214Abruzzo22Campania8332Apulia6222Basilicata211Calabria312Sicily725Sardinia3111Total832827262 Leaders' races 1994 Italian general election (C): Rome CentreCandidateCoalitionPartyVotes%Silvio BerlusconiPoleFI34,35446.29Luigi SpaventaProgressivesPDS29,91440.10Alberto MicheliniPact for ItalyPS9,56612.82Others5930.79Total74,607100.0Turnout 77,56277.19Pole gainSource: Ministry of the Interior 1994 Italian general election (C): Bologna – Borgo PanigaleCandidateCoalitionPartyVotes%Achille OcchettoProgressivesPDS52,99759.77Pier Ferdinando CasiniPoleCCD17,92520.22Alfredo RuoccoNoneAN7,3888.33Maria GualandiPact for ItalyPPI7,1338.04Oliviero ToscaniNoneLP3,2253.64Total88,668100.0Turnout 91,57195.03Progressives gainSource: Ministry of the Interior 1994 Italian general election (C): SassariCandidateCoalitionPartyVotes%Carmelo PorcuPoleAN30,62336.14Mario SegniPact for ItalyPS26,77631.60Gavino AngiusProgressivesPDS17,57020.73Giacomo SpissuNonePSd'Az6,9528.20Gavino SaleNoneParIS1,1851.40Giovanni ConociNoneLR9661.14Others6640.78Total84,736100.0Turnout 89,50486.02Pole gainSource: Ministry of the Interior Aftermath Contrary to its success in the Chamber of Deputies, the Pole failed to win a majority in the Senate. Nevertheless, the first Berlusconi government obtained a vote of confidence in the Senate thanks to the abstention of four PPI senators (Vittorio Cecchi Gori, Stefano Cusumano, Luigi Grillo, and Tomaso Zanoletti), who decided not to take part in the vote. The vote of the Senators for life was not decisive, as three (Gianni Agnelli, Francesco Cossiga, and Giovanni Leone) voted in favour of the government, three were absent (Carlo Bo, Norberto Bobbio, and Amintore Fanfani) and five voted against (Giulio Andreotti, Francesco De Martino, Giovanni Spadolini, Paolo Emilio Taviani, and Leo Valiani). As a result, the Senate gave Berlusconi 159 votes in favour and 153 against.http://www.ilsole24ore.com/fc?cmd=art&codid=20.0.1906313828&chId=30&artType=Articolo&DocRulesView=Libero Il Sole 24 Ore - Nel 1994 decisivi per Berlusconi tre senatori a vita 2007-03-30 2017-02-03 https://web.archive.org/web/20170203161759/http://www.ilsole24ore.com/fc?cmd=art&codid=20.0.1906313828&chId=30&artType=Articolo&DocRulesView=Libero dead Commenting on the historical significance of Berlusconi's victory, together with the complexity of his alliance, the British historian Martin Clark observed: "It was an extraordinary transformation: 70 per cent of the deputies and senators won seats for the first time. The corrupt old parties were replaced by a 'new Right': 97 businessmen and media executives of FI, 122 small businessmen and artisans of the League, bent on a Sack of Rome, and 109 'post-Fascists,' advocates prominent among them, desperate to preserve 'Italy' from the League and social spending from the free marketeers."Clark, Martin (1996). Modern Italy, 1871–1995 (2nd ed.). Pearson Education Limited. p. 422. See also Politics of Italy History of the Italian Republic#Second Republic (1992–present) Notes References 30em Further reading Nick Carter Italy: The Demise of Post-War Partyocracy Political Parties and the Collapse of the Old Orders State University of New York Press 1998 71–94 Ilvo Diamanti Renato Mannheimer Milano a Roma: guida all'Italia elettorale del 1994 Donzelli it 1994 Simon Parker Electoral Reform and Political Change in Italy, 1991–1994 The New Italian Republic: From the Fall of the Berlin Wall to Berlusconi Routledge 1996 40–56 External links it Minister of Internal Affairs of Italy: 1994 Election Results, Chamber of Deputies - uninominal (compressed ZIP file) it Ministry of Internal Affairs of Italy: 1994 Election Results, Chamber of Deputies - proportional it Minister of Internal Affairs of Italy: 1994 Election Results, Senate of the Republic 1994 General election Category:March 1994 in Italy