| Parliament name (generic / translated) |
Il Parlamento / Parliament |
| Structure of parliament |
Bicameral |
| Chamber name (generic / translated) |
Senato della Repubblica / Senate |
| Related chamber (for bicameral parliaments) |
Camera dei Deputati / Chamber of Deputies
|
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) (from/to) | 13 April 2008
14 April 2008 |
| Purpose of elections |
Elections were held for all the seats in the Senate following premature dissolution of this body on 6 February 2008. Elections had previously taken place in April 2006. |
The 2008 elections were called three years earlier than they would have been constitutionally due
following the collapse of Prime Minister Romano Prodi's centre-left coalition in January.
In the previous elections held in April 2006
Mr. Prodi's nine-party "Union" coalition had won 49.8 per cent of the votes. Based on the revised electoral system that awards bonus seats to the winning coalition
the Union had obtained 348 seats in the 630-member Chamber of Deputies. The House of Freedoms coalition of the then Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi
which had secured 49.7 per cent of the votes
had received 281 seats. In the Senate
the Union had taken 158 of the 315 directly-elected seats
only two more than the House of Freedoms.
Mr. Prodi cracked down on tax evasion and increased income tax. Measures to put the public accounts into order reportedly made him unpopular.
In October 2007
Mr. Walter Veltroni
the Mayor of Rome
formed a new party
the Democratic Party (PD). It absorbed most of the parties in Mr. Prodi's coalition. In December 2007
Mr. Berlusconi officially launched the centre-right People of Freedom (PdL) party.
In the meantime
more than 600
000 people signed a petition calling for a referendum to demand that parliament pass a new electoral law. Advocates of a new law called for a proportional representation system with a higher threshold to win parliamentary representation. They argued that the new system would bring about a two-party system
thus providing a more stable parliament.
Both Mr. Veltroni and Mr. Berlusconi insisted that parliament should maintain control over the electoral law. Some parties in Mr. Prodi's coalition
including the Catholic Christian Democrats (UDEUR
which held 14 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and three seats in the Senate)
opposed the referendum. However
on 16 January 2008
the Constitutional Court authorized the referendum to be held in May. On the same day
UDEUR leader and Justice Minister
Mr. Clemente Mastella
announced that he would step down as Justice Minister over an alleged corruption scandal involving his wife. He subsequently withdrew from Mr. Prodi's coalition
triggering a parliamentary vote of confidence.
Mr. Prodi lost the vote of confidence in the Senate on 24 January. On 30 January
President Giorgio Napolitano asked Senate President Franco Marini to form an interim government in order to pass the new electoral law before the next elections. While many senior senators reportedly favoured the formation of the interim government
former prime minister Berlusconi insisted that the country should have snap elections to end the impasse. Former Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies and leader of the Union of Christian and Centre Democrats (UDC)
Mr. Pier Ferdinando Casini
also called for new elections. Following unsuccessful talks to form an interim government
President Napolitano dissolved the parliament on 6 February 2008.
In all
some 160 parties were vying for seats in the parliament. The main contenders were the PD and the PdL. On 16 February
UDC leader Casini announced that his party would contest the elections outside the PdL coalition. The PD was in coalition with the Italy of Values (IV-LDP) party of Mr. Antonio Di Pietro. The National Alliance of Mr. Gianfranco Fini
which originally stayed outside the PdL
joined it shortly after the collapse of Mr. Prodi's government. The PdL formed an electoral alliance with the Northern League of Mr. Umberto Bossi
which demands more autonomy for the regions; and the Movement for Autonomy
led by Mr. Raffaele Lombardo
who had left the UDC in 2005.
The 2008 elections were held against the backdrop of the country's economic slowdown due mainly to the strong euro and low productivity. The main issues were the economy
immigration
and foreign policy.
The PdL led by Mr. Berlusconi pledged to introduce a wide range of tax cuts. Its leader promised to provide a clear solution to debt generated by the national airline Alitalia. He emphasized the need for investment and infrastructure. He also promised to raise State pensions and provide financial aid to boost the country's birth rate.
The 52-year-old Mr. Veltroni urged voters to "turn the page" on the older generation represented by Mr. Berlusconi. He pledged to provide better welfare and cut income tax by 1 per cent a year starting from 2009 for three years. The PD coalition also promised to raise child benefits.
On immigration policy
Mr. Berlusconi vowed to expel all illegal immigrants. Mr. Veltroni promised to extend residence permits for immigrants
while pledging to enforce all expulsion orders for illegal immigrants. On foreign policy
Mr. Berlusconi argued that while Italy might send more troops to Afghanistan
it should either reduce or withdraw its troops from Lebanon. Mr. Veltroni insisted that both sets of troops should be deployed under the same conditions agreed under Mr. Prodi's government. Italy had little less than 2
000 soldiers in Afghanistan and around 2
500 in Lebanon.
Pre-election polls indicated a clear lead for Mr. Berlusconi's camp.
Over 80 per cent of the 47 million eligible voters turned out at the polls.
The PdL coalition won the elections
taking 344 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 174 seats in the Senate
thus regaining control of both chambers. The PD and its allies won 246 and 132 seats respectively. The UDC won 36 and 3 seats.
The newly elected parliament held its first session on 29 April. The Senate elected Mr. Renato Schifani (PdL) as its President. On the following day
the Chamber of Deputies elected Mr. Gianfranco Fini (PdL) as its Speaker.
On 8 May
Mr. Berlusconi was sworn in as Prime Minister for a third time. He subsequently appointed a 21-member cabinet that included four women. |
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Round no 1 (from/to) | 13 April 2008
14 April 2008 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
34'718'630 (80.4%)
1'318'658
33'399'972 |
|
Notes
|
|
| Distribution of seats |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Total
|
|
|
|
|
| People of Freedom |
147
|
|
|
|
|
| Democratic Party |
118
|
|
|
|
|
| Northern League |
25
|
|
|
|
|
| Italy of Values (IV-LDP) |
14
|
|
|
|
|
| Union of the Centre |
3
|
|
|
|
|
| South Tyrolean People's Party (SVP) |
2
|
|
|
|
|
| SVP - Together for Autonomy |
2
|
|
|
|
|
| Movement for Autonomy |
2
|
|
|
|
|
| Associative Movement of Italians Abroad |
1
|
|
|
|
|
| For Aosta Valley (PvdA) |
1
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
264
58
18.01%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to profession |
|
|
| Comments |
Sources:
- Senate (01.01.2010
13.01.2012)
- http://politiche2008.interno.it/
- http://www.senato.it/composizione/index.htm
- http://www.senato.it/leg/16/BGT/Schede/Statistiche/Composizione/SenatoriPerEta.html
Note on the 'Distribution of seats according to sex':
Fifty-seven women were directly elected while one woman was appointed by the President of the Republic. |
Compare data for parliamentary chambers in the Last elections module
