Strategy debates of Italian parties

Partito Democratico

Partito Democratico (PD) entered the 2018 election campaign weakened by the popular rejection of the Constitutional Reform, proposed by party leader Matteo Renzi in a December 2016 Referendum. The party was also damaged by a split that took place in February 2017, when Pierluigi Bersani and his followers left the party. Although, PD enjoyed rising levels of popular support, reaching an electoral peak in the 2014 European Elections, when the party obtained more than 40 per cent of the popular vote, but this proved to be a short-lived development. The PD’s constitutive objective of creating the perspectives for a left-wing majority from the merger of Democratici di Sinistra (Left Democrats) and Margherita (the Daisy - left-wing Christian Democrats) seemed definitively lost.

Renzi modified the party’s ideological positioning

While under previous leaderships PD didn't develop a homogeneous profile, with persistent ideological divisions between Democratici di Sinistra and Margherita, Renzi’s leadership (which started in December 2013, and was renewed in April 2017) strongly redefined Democratic Party’s profile, imposing a new line in terms of both issue positioning and party composition. First, Renzi confronted the previous PD ruling elite, with a reform aimed at the generational renovation of the party. This move resulted in a polarisation between the majority faction supporting Renzi, and the minority opposed to the reform, pushing a number of politicians to leave the party. Secondly, for the 2018 Elections, Renzi put forward only candidates who had fully supported his agenda in the past, excluding adversaries from PD’s electoral lists. Moreover, Renzi modified the party’s ideological positioning, traditionally anchored to the cultural and political traditions of the left, by adopting centre-right economic policies such as tax reduction and labour market flexibility. The economic reforms undertaken by the coalition government led by Renzi from February 2014 to December 2016 are an example of this tendency.

Sharp criticism of European governance mechanisms

During the electoral campaign the accomplishments of the PD-led Coalition Governments (2013-2018) were continuously underlined, with the necessity to maintain the liberal economic reforms undertaken by Renzi Government reaffirmed. Nevertheless, a number of culturally progressive issues – such as the defence of immigrants’ and homosexuals’ rights – also found a place in PD’s 2018 manifesto. Additionally, economic policies, such as the promotion of improved working conditions for all workers, and offering economic support to families, were also a part in the 2018 PD Campaign. Moreover, PD’s manifesto also proposed the introduction of a basic income for all Italian citizens living under the poverty threshold, as an answer to Movimento 5 Stelle’s popular proposal to introduce a ‘citizenship wage’ for all Italians. Finally, with regard to European Union policy, in spite of Renzi’s sharp criticism of European governance mechanisms while heading the government, the 2018 PD Manifesto confirmed the party’s support for further European integration, ultimately aimed at the formation of the ‘United States of Europe’.

Although Movimento 5 Stelle (M5S), which refuses to label itself as a ‘party’, rook part in a national election for the first time in 2013, it approached the campaign as an experienced political project five years later. The change of party leadership reflected this development: before the elections, comedian Beppe Grillo stepped down, and the campaign was led by Luigi Di Maio - Vice-President of the Chamber of Deputies. While M5S chose to remain in opposition during the entire 17th legislature, even though it emerged as the largest party in 2013, it voiced its readiness for government participation by closing the 2018 electoral campaign with presenting a government team comprised of field experts.

“beyond left and right“

M5S’s transformation did not only involve changes in its leadership and structure, but also in its ideological positioning. M5S’s 2013 manifesto focused on typical left-wing-progressive policies, such as environmental protection, anti-growth economy, and the promotion of political participation through culture and new technologies. In 2018, in spite of declaring its ideological position to be ‘beyond left and right’, the party manifesto showed pronounced references to more conservative policies. For instance, M5S expressed anti-immigration stances, by proposing stricter rules to illegal immigration and the development of repatriation agreements.

Sharp rhetoric against EU institutions

In the economic realm, M5S proposed reducing taxes for Italian companies. Nevertheless, M5S maintained its key leftist electoral proposal from 2013 - the introduction of basic income for all Italian citizens. With regard to M5S’s stances on the European Union, the sharp rhetoric against EU institutions and the proposal of organising a referendum on leaving the Eurozone, underlying the party’s 2013 platform, were abandoned and replaced by the demand of more flexibility in the European fiscal parameters.

In 2018, at the age of 81 and despite the ban on running for public office, Silvio Berlusconi came back to the Italian political scene as the leader of the new Forza Italia. Berlusconi’s previous parties - Forza Italia (1994-2008) and Popolo Della Libertà (PDL) (2008-2013) - had been among Italy’s most electorally successful political formations. Berlusconi led Italian right wing coalition governments from 2001 to 2006 and from 2008 to 2011. In 2011, the shock caused by the economic crisis and the intervention of the European Commission led Berlusconi to resign. This contributed to the party’s poor showing in the 2013 Elections, when PDL became the third largest party, trailing behind Movimento 5 Stelle and Partito Democratico. While, at that point, Berlusconi’s political career seemed to be coming to an end, the 2018 campaign demonstrated the opposite.

Centre-right party with a neoliberal economic approach

FI is a centre-right party with a neoliberal economic approach. The key policy proposal of Forza Italia’s 2018 campaign was the introduction of a flat tax, as well as the abolition of taxes on houses and inheritances. With regard to the European Union, FI proposes flexibility in terms of the Eurozone economic and fiscal parameters which, in their view, would facilitate Italy’s economic recovery. The central topics of the 2018 campaign - immigration and security - were also mentioned in FI’s manifesto. Their stances on the matter resonated well with the right-wing coalition in which FI takes part - Berlusconi’s party aspires to reduce immigration flows towards Italy.

In favour of armed self-defence

It is also opposed to the extension of citizenship rights to the children of immigrants, proposes a greater presence of armed forces in the Italian streets, and is in favour of armed self-defence. Nevertheless, the party usually addresses these topics with a calmer tone than its far-right allies Lega and Fratelli D’Italia.

La Lega

Lega took part in the 2018 Elections deeply renewed, having completed its evolution from a regional to a national party, as also evidenced by the removal of the adjective ‘nord’ (northern) from its name. In the past Lega Nord had been one of the most successful European regionalist parties since it managed to participate in national governments. Lega Nord served national right-wing coalition governments led by Silvio Berlusconi from 2001 to 2006, and from 2008 to 2011. After the resignation of Berlusconi in 2011, the party did not support the technocratic government led by Mario Monti and moved to the opposition, where it remained after 2013 elections, when it obtained 4.8 per cent of the popular vote.

Salvini redefined the ideological party positioning

In 2012, a series of scandals led to the replacement of Lega Nord founder - Umberto Bossi, as party leader. The first to assume the post was Roberto Maroni, followed shortly after by Matteo Salvini, who is leading the party since 2013. In the past five years Salvini redefined the ideological positioning of Lega by supporting views closer to those of populist radical right parties on issues such as nationalism (instead of regionalism), anti-Europeanism and immigration. Lega’s 2018 manifesto reflected the new approach of Salvini, who proposed severe measures against illegal immigration, the deportation of immigrants who have committed a crime, and for the introduction of limits to the number of residency permits given to immigrant workers under the slogan “Italian workers first”. Lega also proposed the cancellation of the “Fornero reform” on pensions, and the introduction of a flat tax. All these issues were often the focus of Salvini during the 2018 campaign. Less attention was given to Lega’s position on the European Union: the party manifesto was clearly against European integration, given the proposed request to review European Treaties signed after Maastricht Treaty in order to regain full national sovereignty over the economy.