Italian Parties and Party System(s)

The Italian party system has traditionally been considered as an outlier in the specialized literature. In fact, one can speak of different party systems depending on the observation point in time. However, a number of recurring features can be pinpointed when focusing on the so-called Second Republic: the instability of the format and mechanics of the political competition; the over-production of political reforms concerning the electoral rules and the public funding regimes; and the weakness and fluidity of party organizations. The aim of this chapter is to identify the main trajectories followed by the evolution of Italian politics from 1994 to 2018: in particular, we focus on the volatile ‘rules of the game’ as well as on the organizational features and the interaction between the main actors of the party system. As the data show, both institutional and agent-related inadequacies have undermined the legitimization and reliability of Italian democracy, paving the way to technocratic solutions and to the rise of anti-establishment parties.