Abstract
While Italy has for long been a Europhile country, public opinion has recently become more critical of the EU, and populist parties have been able to consolidate their support by relying on Eurosceptical rhetoric. This chapter aims to shed light on the relationship between the Partito Democratico—the main centre-left party in Italy—and the European integration project and the EU institutions more generally. Our empirical analyses are presented in three main sections. (a) Relying on Eurobarometer data, the chapter describes the general background to the patterns emerging in Italian public opinion in recent years. (b) Content analysis of the party manifesto for the 2019 EP election offers a discussion of how the Partito Democratico addressed EU-related issues. (c) Human content analysis was carried out on Facebook messages published by the official party account during the EP election campaign. While the Italian public’s enthusiasm for Europe has been declining since the 1980s, as far as the Partito Democratico is concerned, findings on both the party manifesto and the controlled communication on Facebook confirm the party’s strong and consistent support for the EU integration project.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.