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Tied hands? Italian political parties and Europe

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 January 2016

Nicolò Conti
Nicolò Conti*
Affiliation:
University of Siena
*
∗Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

Italian political parties have been involved for almost three decades in a multi-level electoral game encompassing the election of national, supranational and local institutions. The content of the electoral competition has also changed to include not only nationwide, but also sub-national and supranational issues. This article analyses the interaction between Italian parties and the theme of European integration. The aim is to explore the role of contentious European Union matters in domestic electoral competition, specifically at the time of European elections. Such a role is important to understand to what extent the Italian parties politicise the EU issues during EP elections, and to determine the impact of such issues on the Italian party system and on its patterns of policy competition. In particular, the article will explore whether Europe as an issue has been internalised along the main patterns of party competition or has produced a disruptive effect and forms of realignment.

Keywords

Italian partiesParty CompetitionEU
Type
Research Article
Information
Modern Italy , Volume 14 , Issue 2 , May 2009 , pp. 203 - 216
Copyright
Copyright © Association for the study of Modern Italy 

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