Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal (except in senatorial elections, where
minimum age is 25)
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Giorgio NAPOLITANO (since 15 May 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister (referred to in Italy as the
president of the Council of Ministers) Romano PRODI (since 17 May
2006)
cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and
approved by the president
elections: president elected by an electoral college consisting of
both houses of parliament and 58 regional representatives for a
seven-year term (no term limits); election last held 10 May 2006
(next to be held May 2013); prime minister appointed by the
president and confirmed by parliament
election results: Giorgio NAPOLITANO elected president on the fourth
round of voting; electoral college vote - 543
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament or Parlamento consists of the Senate or Senato
della Repubblica (315 seats; elected by proportional vote with the
winning coalition in each region receiving 55% of seats from that
region; members serve five-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies
or Camera dei Deputati (630 seats; elected by popular vote with the
winning national coalition receiving 54% of chamber seats; members
serve five-year terms); note - electoral vote reform passed in
December 2005
elections: Senate - last held 10 April 2006 (next to be held in
2011); Chamber of Deputies - last held 10 April 2006 (next to be
held May 2011)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - The Union 158 (DS 62, DL 39, RC 27, Together with the Union
11, other 19), House of Freedoms 154 (FI 79, AN 41, UDC 21, LEGA
13), other 3; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA;
seats by party - The Union 348 (DS 220, RC 41, Rose in the Fist 18,
Italy of Values 17, PdCI 16, Greens Federation 15, UDEUR 10, other
11), House of Freedoms 276 (FI 140, AN 71, Union of Christian and
Center Democrats 39, LEGA 26), other 6
Judicial branch:
Constitutional Court or Corte Costituzionale (composed of 15
judges: one-third appointed by the president, one-third elected by
parliament, one-third elected by the ordinary and administrative
Supreme Courts)
Political parties and leaders:
Center-Left Union Coalition [Romano PRODI]: Ulivo Alliance
(including Democrats of the Left or DS [Piero FASSINO];
Daisy-Democracy is Freedom or DL [Francesco RUTELLI]); Rose in the
Fist (including Italian Social Democrats or SDI [Enrico BOSELLI];
Italian Radical Party [Emma BONINO]); Italian Communist Party or
PdCI [Oliviero DILIBERTO]; Green Federation [Alfonso PECORARO
SCANIO]; Communist Renewal or RC [Fausto BERTINOTTI]; Italy of
Values or IdV [Antonio DI PIETRO]; Union of Democrats for Europe or
UDEUR [Clemente MASTELLA]; Republican European Movement or MRE
[Luciana SBARBATI]
Center-Right Freedom House Coalition [Silvio BERLUSCONI]: Forza
Italia or FI [Silvio BERLUSCONI]; National Alliance or AN
[Gianfranco FINI]; Union of Christian Democrats of the Center or UDC
[Pier Ferdinando CASINI]; Northern League or LEGA [Umberto BOSSI];
Christian Democracy (Per la Autonomie) [Publio FIORI]
other non-allied parties: New Italian Socialist Party or New PSI
[Gianni DE MICHELIS]; Italian Republican Party or PRI [Giorgio LA
MALFA]; Social Alternative [Alessandra MUSSOLINI]; Social
Movement-Tricolor Flame or MSI-Fiamma [Luca ROMAGNOLI]; Social Idea
Movement with Rauti or MIS [Pino RAUTI]; South Tyrol People's Party
or SVP (German speakers) [Elmar Pichler ROLLE]; Union of Valley
Aosta Region or UV [Guido CESAL]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Italian manufacturers and merchants associations (Confindustria,
Confcommercio); organized farm groups (Confcoltivatori,
Confagricoltura); Roman Catholic Church; three major trade union
confederations (Confederazione Generale Italiana del Lavoro or CGIL
[Guglielmo EPIFANI] which is left wing, Confederazione Italiana dei
Sindacati Lavoratori or CISL [Savino PEZZOTTA], which is Roman
Catholic centrist, and Unione Italiana del Lavoro or UIL [Luigi
ANGELETTI] which is lay centrist)
International organization participation:
AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS (observer),
CDB, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 7, G- 8,
G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA,
IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO,
ITU, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG,
OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, SECI (observer),
UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMOGIP, UNRWA, UNTSO,
UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Giovanni CASTELLANETA chancery: 3000 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 612-4400 FAX: [1] (202) 518-2151 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco consulate(s): Detroit
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Ronald P. SPOGLI embassy: Via Vittorio Veneto 121, 00187-Rome mailing address: PSC 59, Box 100, APO AE 09624 telephone: [39] (06) 46741 FAX: [39] (06) 488-2672, 4674-2356 consulate(s) general: Florence, Milan, Naples
Flag description:
three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red;
similar to the flag of Ireland, which is longer and is green (hoist
side), white, and orange; also similar to the flag of the Cote
d'Ivoire, which has the colors reversed - orange (hoist side),
white, and green
note: inspired by the French flag brought to Italy by Napoleon in
1797