List of political parties in Italy

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This article contains a list of political parties in Italy since Italian unification in 1861.

Throughout history, numerous political parties have been operating in Italy, and since World War II no party has ever gained enough support to govern alone: parties thus form political alliances and coalition governments.

In the 2018 general election three groupings obtained most of the votes and most of the seats in the two houses of the Italian Parliament: a centre-right coalition, composed of Lega, Forza Italia, Brothers of Italy and minor allies; the anti-establishment Five Star Movement; a centre-left coalition, composed of the Democratic Party and minor allies.

Coalition of parties for regional elections can be slightly different from those for general elections, due to different regional conditions (for instance, in some regions the Five Star Movement and the Democratic Party are in coalition, but not in other ones) and the presence of several regional parties, some of which active only at regional level.

History[]

Between 1945 and 1994, Italian politics was dominated by two major parties: Christian Democracy, the main party of government, and the Italian Communist Party, the main opposition party. The other opposition party was the post-fascist Italian Social Movement. During its almost fifty years in government, Christian Democracy chose its coalition partners among four parties: the Italian Socialist Party, the Italian Democratic Socialist Party, the Italian Republican Party and the Italian Liberal Party.

For 46 consecutive years, the Christian Democrats led the government except for five years. Between 1983 and 1991, they led a coalition government with the Socialists, the Social Democrats, the Republicans and the Liberals (named Pentapartito). That was the time when several northern regional parties demanding autonomy organised themselves at the regional level. In 1991 they federated themselves into Lega Nord, which became the country's fourth largest party in the 1992 general election.

In 1992–94, the political system was shaken by a series of corruption scandals known collectively as Tangentopoli. These events led to the disappearance of the five parties of government. Consequently, the Communists, who had evolved to become Democratic Party of the Left in 1991, and the post-fascists, who launched National Alliance in 1994, gained strength. Following the 1994 general election, media tycoon Silvio Berlusconi became Prime Minister at the head of a coalition composed mainly of three parties: his brand-new party Forza Italia (joined by several members of defunct mainstream parties), National Alliance and Lega Nord.

Between 1996 and 2008, Italian political parties were organised into two big coalitions, the centre-right Pole for Freedoms (which was renamed House of Freedoms after the re-entry of Lega Nord in 2000) and The Olive Tree (part of the new, broader coalition The Union in 2005) on the centre-left. The latter governed from 1996 to 2001 and again between 2006 and 2008, while the House of Freedoms was in government between 2001 and 2006. In 2008 The Union ceased to exist as the newly-founded Democratic Party decided to break the alliance with its left-wing partners, notably including the Communist Refoundation Party. On the centre-right, Forza Italia and National Alliance merged to form The People of Freedom, which continued the alliance with Lega Nord and won the 2008 general election.

In the 2013 general election the party system was fragmented in four groupings: the centre-left composed of the Democratic Party and Left Ecology Freedom; the traditional centre-right alliance between The People of Freedom and Lega Nord; Beppe Grillo's Five Star Movement; and a new centrist coalition around Mario Monti's Civic Choice. In November 2013 The People of Freedom was dissolved and merged into the new Forza Italia, provoking the split of the New Centre-Right. In December 2016 Left Ecology Freedom was dissolved in order to take part to the formation of Italian Left. In February 2017 splinters from the Democratic Party and Italian Left launched the Article One, while in March the New Centre-Right was transformed into Popular Alternative.

In the 2018 general election the major groupings were reduced to three: the centre-right composed of Lega (which was the coalition's largest party for the first time), Forza Italia, Brothers of Italy and minor allies; the Five Star Movement (which was the most voted party); the centre-left composed of the Democratic Party and minor allies. Free and Equal, a new left-wing joint list whose main members were Article One and Italian Left, came a distant fourth.

Active parties[]

Major parties[]

Active parties fulfilling at least one of the following conditions: having scored at least 5% of the vote in the latest countrywide (general/European) election; being represented by at least 100 MPs; being represented by at least 10 MEPs.

Party Abbr. Est. Deputies Senators MEPs Leader
Five Star Movement M5S 2009
156 / 630
73 / 315
8 / 76
Giuseppe Conte
Lega per Salvini Premier[a] Lega 2017
133 / 630
62 / 315
24 / 76
Matteo Salvini
Democratic Party PD 2007
97 / 630
40 / 315
14 / 76
Enrico Letta
Forza Italia FI 2013
80 / 630
48 / 315
10 / 76
Silvio Berlusconi
Brothers of Italy FdI 2012
37 / 630
21 / 315
8 / 76
Giorgia Meloni
  1. ^ Including Lega Nord (est. in 1991)

Minor parties[]

Active parties having fulfilled at least one of the following conditions: having scored at least 0.5% of the vote in a countrywide (general/European) election; having elected at least one MP/MEP/regional councillor with their own lists; having been represented by at least 5 MPs, 3 MEPs or in 3 different Regional Councils.

Party Abbr. Est. Leader
Act! Fare! 2015 Flavio Tosi
Action A 2019 Carlo Calenda
Alliance of the Centre AdC 2008 Francesco Pionati
Alternativa A 2021
Article One Art.1 2017 Roberto Speranza
Cambiamo![a] C! 2019 Giovanni Toti
CasaPound CP 2003
Centrists for Europe CpE 2017 Pier Ferdinando Casini
Communist Party PC 2009 Marco Rizzo
Communist Refoundation Party PRC 1991 Maurizio Acerbo
Coraggio Italia CI 2021 Luigi Brugnaro
Democratic Centre CD 2012 Bruno Tabacci
Green Europe EV 2019 Angelo Bonelli, Eleonora Evi
Identity and Action[a] IDeA 2015 Gaetano Quagliariello
Italexit 2020 Gianluigi Paragone
Italia in Comune IiC 2018 Federico Pizzarotti
Italia Viva IV 2019 Matteo Renzi
Italian Animalist Party PAI 2006
Italian Left SI 2017 Nicola Fratoianni
Italian Liberal Party PLI 1997 Stefano De Luca
Italian Republican Party PRI 1895
Italian Socialist Party PSI 2007
Italy of Values IdV 1998 Ignazio Messina
Moderates Mod. 2005 Giacomo Portas
More Europe[b] +E 2017 Benedetto Della Vedova
New Force FN 1997 Roberto Fiore
New Italian Socialist Party NPSI 2001 Stefano Caldoro
Pensioners' Party PP 1987 Carlo Fatuzzo
Popular Alternative AP 2017 Paolo Alli
Populars for Italy PpI 2014 Mario Mauro
Possible Pos 2015 Beatrice Brignone
Power to the People PaP 2017 ,
Solidary Democracy DemoS 2014
The People of Family PdF 2016 Mario Adinolfi
Tricolour Flame FT 1995
Union of the Centre UDC 2002 Lorenzo Cesa
Us with Italy NcI 2017 Maurizio Lupi
Workers' Communist Party PCL 2006 Marco Ferrando
  1. ^ a b Affiliated with Coraggio Italia
  2. ^ Including the Italian Radicals (est. in 2001)

Regional parties[]

Active regional-only parties having fulfilled at least one of the following conditions: having scored at least 2% of the vote in a regional election (or in a general/European election at the regional level); having elected at least one MP/MEP/regional councillor with their own lists; having been represented by at least 5% of the elects in a Regional Council (Provincial in the cases of Trentino and South Tyrol).

Region Party Abbr. Est.
 Aosta Valley Valdostan Union UV 1945
Lega Vallée d'Aoste LNVdA 1991
Mouv' Mouv' 2017
For the Autonomy PA 2020
Valdostan Alliance AV 2019
Edelweiss SA 2001
Civic Network RC 2019
For Our Valley PVdA 2016
Renaissance Aosta Valley RvdA 2020
 Piedmont Lega Piemonte LNP 1991
Greens Greens VV 1991
 Lombardy Lega Lombarda LL 1984
 Trentino Lega Trentino LNT 1991
Trentino Tyrolean Autonomist Party PATT 1988
Trentino Civic List CT 2013
Futura 2018
Union for Trentino UpT 2008
Trentino Project PT 2012
Popular Autonomists AP 2017
AD 2016
Fassa Association AF 2008
Ladin Autonomist Union UAL 1983
People's Centre CP 1998
Loyal to Trentino LT 2003
 South Tyrol South Tyrolean People's Party SVP 1945
Team K TK 2018
Lega Alto Adige Südtirol LNST 1991
Greens of South Tyrol VGV 1978
Die Freiheitlichen dF 1992
South Tyrolean Freedom STF 2007
Alto Adige in the Heart AAC 2013
Unitalia Unitalia 1996
 Veneto Liga Veneta LV 1980
Liga Veneta Repubblica LVR 1998
Independence We Veneto INV 2014
Venetian Independence IV 2012
 Friuli-Venezia Giulia Lega Friuli-Venezia Giulia LNFVG 1991
FVG Project PFVG 2018
Responsible Autonomy AR 2013
Pact for Autonomy PpA 2015
Citizens CFVG 2003
Slovene Union SS 1963
Friuli Movement MF 1966
 Emilia-Romagna Lega Emilia LNE 1991
Lega Romagna LNR 1991
 Liguria Lega Liguria LNL 1991
 Tuscany Lega Toscana LNT 1991
 Marche Lega Marche LNM 1991
 Umbria Lega Umbria LNU 1991
 Abruzzo AP 2017
 Campania Italy is Popular IP 2017
Us Campanians NC 2020
Democratic Republicans RD 2004
We the South NS 2010
 Apulia Schittulli Political Movement MPS 2009
Southern Action League LAM 1992
 Basilicata United Populars PU 2008
 Calabria Io Resto in Calabria IRC 2010
DP 2014
The DemoKRats DKR 2009
 Sicily Diventerà Bellissima DB 2014
Future Sicily SF 2015
Movement for New Autonomy MNA 2010s
Cantiere Popolare CP 2012
Now Sicily Ora 2012
We Sicilians NS 1994
 Sardinia Lega Sardegna LS 2010
Sardinian Action Party PSd'Az 1921
Sardinian Reformers RS 1993
Sardinia 20Twenty S20V 2013
Sardinian Progressives PS 2017
Party of Sardinians PdS 2013
Unidos Unidos 2013
Project Republic of Sardinia ProgReS 2011
SC 2018
Fortza Paris FP 2004
Union of Sardinians UdS 1998
Red Moors RM 2009
Christian Popular Union UPC 2009
Independence Republic of Sardinia iRS 2002
Sardigna Natzione Indipendentzia SNI 1994

Parties of Italians abroad[]

Active parties having fulfilled at least one of the following conditions: having scored at least 15% of the vote in one constituency abroad in a general election; having been represented by at least one MP elected abroad.

Area Party Abbr. Est.
 South America Associative Movement of Italians Abroad MAIE 2008
South American Union of Italian Emigrants USEI 2006

Defunct parties[]

Major parties[]

Defunct parties having fulfilled at least one of the following conditions: having scored at least 5% of the vote in a countrywide (general/European) election; having been represented by at least 100 MPs; having been represented by at least 10 MEPs.

  • Constitutional Democratic Party (1913–1919)
  • Italian Radical Party (1904–1922)
  • Liberal Union (1913–1922)
  • Italian People's Party (1919–1926)
  • Italian Democratic Liberal Party (1921–1926)
  • Italian Social Democratic Party (1922–1926)
  • Unitary Socialist Party (1922–1925)
  • National Fascist Party (1921–1943)
  • Common Man's Front (1946–1949)
  • Monarchist National Party (1946–1959)
  • Unified Socialist Party (1966–1969)
  • Italian Communist Party (1921–1991)
  • Italian Socialist Party (1892–1994)
  • Italian Liberal Party (1922–1994)
  • Christian Democracy (1943–1994)
  • Italian Social Movement (1946–1995)
  • Italian Democratic Socialist Party (1947–1998)
  • Democratic Party of the Left (1991–1998)
  • Italian People's Party (1994–2002)
  • The Democrats (1999–2002)
  • Bonino List (1999–2004)
  • Democrats of the Left (1998–2007)
  • Democracy is Freedom – The Daisy (2002–2007)
  • Forza Italia (1994–2009)
  • National Alliance (1995–2009)
  • The People of Freedom (2009–2013)
  • Civic Choice (2013–2019)

Minor parties[]

Defunct parties having fulfilled at least one of the following conditions: having scored at least 0.5% of the vote in a countrywide (general/European) election; having elected at least one MP/MEP/regional councillor with their own lists; having been represented by at least 5 MPs, 3 MEPs or in 3 different Regional Councils.

Regional parties[]

Defunct regional-only parties having fulfilled at least one of the following conditions: having scored at least 2% of the vote in a regional election (or in a general/European election at the regional level); having elected at least one MP/MEP/regional councillor with their own lists; having been represented by at least 5% of the elects in a Regional Council (Provincial in the cases of Trentino and South Tyrol).

Aosta Valley
Piedmont
Lombardy
Liguria
  • (1998–2005)
Trentino
  • (1950s)
  • Craftsman-Farmer Alliance (1964–1968)
  • New Left (1978–1983)
  • Trentino Tyrolean People's Party (1948–1982)
  • Trentino Tyrolean Autonomist Union (1982–1988)
  • Integral Autonomy (1982–1988)
  • (1993–1996)
  • Integral Autonomy (1996–2000)
  • Trentino Autonomists (2000–2007)
  • Trentino Tomorrow (1998–2003)
  • Daisy Civic List (1998–2008)
  • Democrats for Trentino (2008)
  • United Valleys (2006–2008)
  • Administer Trentino (2008–2018)
  • (2016–2020)
South Tyrol
  • Deutscher Verband (1919–1926)
  • Tyrolean Homeland Party (1964–1968)
  • Social Progressive Party of South Tyrol (1966–1978)
  • Social Democratic Party of South Tyrol (1972–1983)
  • New Left (1978–1983)
  • Party of Independents (1972–1987)
  • South Tyrolean Homeland Federation (1974–1989)
  • Freedom Party of South Tyrol (1987–1989)
  • Democratic Union of Alto Adige (1993–2008)
  • Ladins Dolomites (1993–2010s)
  • Democratic Party of South Tyrol (1997–2010s)
  • Citizens' Union for South Tyrol (1989–2020)
Veneto
Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Tuscany
  • More Tuscany (2012–2015)
Marche
Lazio
  • (2016–2018)
Molise
Campania
Apulia
  • Apulia First of All (2005–2015)
  • Moderates and Populars (2010–2015)
  • I the South (2009–2016)
Basilicata
  • (1995–1990s)
  • I Love Lucania (2010–2013)
  • Reality Italy (2013–2018)
Calabria
Sicily
Sardinia

Parties of Italians abroad[]

Defunct parties having fulfilled at least one of the following conditions: having scored at least 15% of the vote in one constituency abroad in a general election; having been represented by at least one MP elected abroad.

Coalitions[]

Active coalitions[]

Active coalitions having scored at least 10% of the vote in a countrywide (general/European) election.

  • Centre-right coalition
  • Centre-left coalition

Defunct coalitions[]

Defunct coalitions having scored at least 10% of the vote in a countrywide (general/European) election.

  • National Bloc (1921–1924)
  • National List (1924–1926)
  • Popular Democratic Front (1947–1948)
  • Centrist coalition (1953)
  • Pact for Italy (1994–1995)
  • Pole of Freedoms (1994–1995)
  • Pole of Good Government (1994–1995)
  • Alliance of Progressives (1994–1995)
  • Pole for Freedoms (1996–2000)
  • The Olive Tree (1995–2007)
  • The Union (2000–2008)
  • House of Freedoms (2004–2008)
  • Italy. Common Good (2012–2013)
  • With Monti for Italy (2012–2013)

Parliamentary groups[]

Parliamentary groups not directly connected to a political party or coalition of political parties.

Active parliamentary groups[]

Defunct parliamentary groups[]

  • Dissident Left (1877–1887)
  • Historical Far Left (1867–1904)
  • Historical Left (1849–1913)
  • Historical Right (1849–1913)
  • (1946–1948)
  • National Union (1947–1948)
  • (1987–1992)
  • Independent Left (1968–1992)
  • (1994–1996)
  • People and Territory (2011–2013)
  • National Cohesion (2011–2013)
  • For the Third Pole (2011–2013)
  • For Italy (2013–2015)
  • Popular Area (2014–2017)
  • Civics and Innovators (2016–2018)
  • Great Autonomies and Freedom (2013–2018)
  • Federation of Freedom (2017–2018)
  • Europeanists (2021)

See also[]

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