Italy - 2008 General Election
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 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. 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 Walter Veltroni the Mayor of Rome formed a new party the Democratic Party (PD). It absorbed most of the parties in Prodi's coalition. In December 2007 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 Veltroni and Berlusconi insisted that parliament should maintain control over the electoral law. Some parties in 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 Clemente Mastella announced that he would step down as Justice Minister over an alleged corruption scandal involving his wife. He subsequently withdrew from Prodi's coalition triggering a parliamentary vote of confidence. 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) 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 Antonio Di Pietro. The National Alliance of Gianfranco Fini which originally stayed outside the PdL joined it shortly after the collapse of Prodi's government. The PdL formed an electoral alliance with the Northern League of Umberto Bossi which demands more autonomy for the regions; and the Movement for Autonomy led by 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 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 Veltroni urged voters to "turn the page" on the older generation represented by 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 Berlusconi vowed to expel all illegal immigrants. Veltroni promised to extend residence permits for immigrants while pledging to enforce all expulsion orders for illegal immigrants. On foreign policy Berlusconi argued that while Italy might send more troops to Afghanistan it should either reduce or withdraw its troops from Lebanon. Veltroni insisted that both sets of troops should be deployed under the same conditions agreed under 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 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 Renato Schifani (PdL) as its President. On the following day the Chamber of Deputies elected Gianfranco Fini (PdL) as its Speaker. On 8 May Berlusconi was sworn in as Prime Minister for a third time. He subsequently appointed a 21-member cabinet that included four women.
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