Italy has yet another electoral law

Abstract

Since 1993 the Italian electoral law has been changed three times. The most recent reform, made indispensable by a judgement of the Constitutional Court, was approved in early May 2015. This article analyses the main features of the so-called Italicum: small constituencies, two preference votes, assurance of election for the heads of the party lists, a sizeable majority bonus, a run-off between the two best-placed parties. A contextual criticism of each individual feature is then provided, identifying the many technical inadequacies and the excessive partisanship of some choices, especially the prohibition of electoral coalitions before and after the first round of voting. Finally, the prediction is formulated that the winner of the next election might engage in yet another electoral reform.