Abstract
The unification of Italy, largely completed by the occupation of Rome in 1870, resulted in the extension of the 1848 Piedmontese constitution to the rest of Italy. This provided for a nominated Senate (Senato) and a directly elected Chamber of Deputies (Camera dei Deputati). The franchise was very restricted. Only men aged over 25 who were literate and also met either minimum tax-payment or office-holding qualifications could vote, about eight per cent of that age group. A two-ballot single-member constituency system was used. If no candidate won an absolute majority of the vote, a run-off election was held between the two leading candidates. Apart from a brief experiment with a multi-member constituency plurality system from 1882 to 1891, the two-ballot system remained in use until 1919.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Sources
M. Amoraso, ‘Italy’, in G. Hand, J. Georgel and C. Sasse (eds.), European Electoral Systems Handbook (London: Butterworth, 1979) 140–70
M. Caciagli and P. Scaramozzino (eds.), Il voto di chi non vota: l’astensionismo elettorale in Italia e in Europa (Milan: Edizioni di Comunità , 1983)
A. Di Virgilio, ‘Riforma elettorale e collegio unominale’, Quaderni dell ‘Osservatorio Elettorale, 19 (1987), 89–120
P. Farneti, ‘Social conflict, parliamentary fragmentation, institutional shift and the rise of fascism: Italy’, in J. Linz and A. Stepan (eds.), The Breakdown of Democratic Regimes (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978) 3–31
O. Focardi, ‘I partiti politici alle elezioni generali del 1895’, Giornale degli Economisti, 11 (1895), 133–180
C. Ghini, Le elezioni in Italia, 1946–1968 (Milan: Edizioni del Calendario, 1968)
U. Giusti, Le correnti politiche italiane attraverso due riformi elettorali dal 1909 al 1921 (Florence: Alfani e Venturi, 1922)
A. Mastropaolo, ‘Electoral processes, political behaviour, and social forces in Italy from the rise of the left to the fall of Giolitti, 1876–1913’, in O. Busch (ed.), Wählerbewegung in der Europäischer Geschichte. (Berlin: Colloquium Verlag, 1980)97–124
Ministero dell’Interno, Elezione della Camera dei Deputati 1948 (Rome: Istituto Poligrafico dello Stato, 1949) and subsequent volumes in the same series
Ministero dell’Interno, Compendio dei risultati delle elezioni politiche dal 1848 al 1958 (Rome: Istituto Poligrafico dello Stato, 1963)
G. Schepis, Le consultazioni popolari in Italia dal 1848 al 1957: profilo storico-statistico (Empoli: Editrice Caparrini, 1958)
A. Schiavi, ‘Le ultime elezioni politiche italiane’, La Riforma Sociale, 14 (1904), 979–988 and 15 (1905), 127–160
A. Schiavi, Come hanno votati gli elettori italiani (Milan: Avanti! 1914)
C. Seton-Watson, Italy from Liberalism to Fascism (London: Methuen, 1967)
A. Torresin, ‘Statistica delle elezioni generali politiche del giugno 1900’, La Riforma Sociale, 10 (1900) 788–831
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 1991 Thomas T. Mackie and Richard Rose
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Mackie, T.T., Rose, R. (1991). Italy. In: The International Almanac of Electoral History. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-09851-4_13
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-09851-4_13
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-09853-8
Online ISBN: 978-1-349-09851-4
eBook Packages: Palgrave Political & Intern. Studies CollectionPolitical Science and International Studies (R0)