Still a ‘Red Subculture’? Continuity and Change in Central Italy

Abstract

In the 1990s – otherwise a period of great political challenges and rapid transformation of Italian politics - electoral behaviour in central Italy remained surprisingly stable and reflected the continuity of communist political traditions in this region. This fact has been seen predominantly as an indicator of the persistence, not only of political fidelity to left-wing parties, but also of a ‘red subculture’. This article presents a critical reassessment of this interpretation, based on research carried out in 1994–97 in Valdelsa, a ‘red area’ of Tuscany. The study indicates several elements of continuity, but also many facets of change in the political subculture. The capacity of the local community to reproduce left-wing attitudes across generations is quite clear. However, modifications in local forms of economic development, in the political culture and in the links between the associations of civil society and the political system are even more apparent. The article chiefly addresses two aspects of these transformations: a) the change in patterns of participation and representation along generational and gender lines; and b) the relationship between the political subculture and civic culture among different social groups.