Italian general election, 1946
Encyclopedia
The Italian general election of 2 June 1946 was the first Italian election after World War II
and elected 556 deputies to a Constituent Assembly
. Theoretically, the deputies to be chosen were 573, but the election didn't take place in Julian March
and in South Tyrol
, which were under military occupation by the United Nations
.
For the first time, Italian women were allowed to vote in a national election. Electors had two votes: one to elect the representatives, and one to choose the institutional form of the State.
was chosen. Italian provinces were united in 31 constituencies, each electing a group of candidates. At constituency level, seats were divided between open list
s using the largest remainder method
with the Imperiali quota
. Remaining votes and seats were transferred at national level, where special closed list
s of national leaders received the last seats using the Hare quota
.
(CLN) and the royal Lieutenant General of the Realm
Humbert II
. No democratic elections having taken place for more than twenty years, legislative power was given to the government but, after the first election, the Italian Council of Ministers
would have to receive a vote of confidence by the newly-elected Constituent Assembly.
The three main contestants were: the
Christian Democracy
, the
Socialist Party
, and the Communist Party
. Smaller parties included the Italian Liberal Party
, heir of the pre-fascist and conservative ruling class, which proposed an alliance called National Democratic Union
, monarchists groups that created National Bloc of Freedom
, and the social liberal Action Party and Labour Democratic Party
.
Here are the results of the Italian Constituent Assembly election of 1946.
Together with the election, a constitutional referendum took place. Italian electors had to choose if they wanted to continue the reign of Humbert II of Savoy
or to turn Italy into a republic. While all regions of Northern Italy
as far as Tuscany
and Marche
s gave a majority to the republic, all regions of Southern Italy from Latium
and Abruzzo
voted to maintain the monarchy.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and elected 556 deputies to a Constituent Assembly
Constituent assembly
A constituent assembly is a body composed for the purpose of drafting or adopting a constitution...
. Theoretically, the deputies to be chosen were 573, but the election didn't take place in Julian March
Julian March
The Julian March is a former political region of southeastern Europe on what are now the borders between Croatia, Slovenia, and Italy...
and in South Tyrol
South Tyrol
South Tyrol , also known by its Italian name Alto Adige, is an autonomous province in northern Italy. It is one of the two autonomous provinces that make up the autonomous region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. The province has an area of and a total population of more than 500,000 inhabitants...
, which were under military occupation by the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
.
For the first time, Italian women were allowed to vote in a national election. Electors had two votes: one to elect the representatives, and one to choose the institutional form of the State.
Electoral system
To emphatize the restoration of democracy after the fascist era, a pure party-list proportional representationParty-list proportional representation
Party-list proportional representation systems are a family of voting systems emphasizing proportional representation in elections in which multiple candidates are elected...
was chosen. Italian provinces were united in 31 constituencies, each electing a group of candidates. At constituency level, seats were divided between open list
Open list
Open list describes any variant of party-list proportional representation where voters have at least some influence on the order in which a party's candidates are elected...
s using the largest remainder method
Largest remainder method
The largest remainder method is one way of allocating seats proportionally for representative assemblies with party list voting systems...
with the Imperiali quota
Imperiali quota
The Imperiali quota is a formula used to calculate the minimum number, or quota, of votes required to capture a seat in some forms of single transferable vote or largest remainder method party-list proportional representation voting systems....
. Remaining votes and seats were transferred at national level, where special closed list
Closed list
Closed list describes the variant of party-list proportional representation where voters can only vote for political parties as a whole and thus have no influence on the party-supplied order in which party candidates are elected...
s of national leaders received the last seats using the Hare quota
Hare quota
The Hare quota is a formula used under some forms of the Single Transferable Vote system and the largest remainder method of party-list proportional representation...
.
The race
At the end of World War II, Italy was governed under transitional laws as a result of agreements between the National Liberation CommitteeNational Liberation Committee
The National Liberation Committee was the underground political entity of Italian Partisans during the German occupation of Italy in the last years of the Second World War. It was a multi-party entity, whose members were united by their anti-fascism...
(CLN) and the royal Lieutenant General of the Realm
Luogotenente
The Italian word luogotenente , plural luogotenenti, is an etymological parallel to lieutenant, deriving from the Latin locum tenens "holding a place", i.e...
Humbert II
Umberto II of Italy
Umberto II, occasionally anglicized as Humbert II was the last King of Italy for slightly over a month, from 9 May 1946 to 12 June 1946. He was nicknamed the King of May -Biography:...
. No democratic elections having taken place for more than twenty years, legislative power was given to the government but, after the first election, the Italian Council of Ministers
Council of Ministers of Italy
The Cabinet of Italy is a principal organ of the Government of Italy...
would have to receive a vote of confidence by the newly-elected Constituent Assembly.
The three main contestants were: the
Christian Democracy
Christian Democracy (Italy)
Christian Democracy was a Christian democratic party in Italy. It was founded in 1943 as the ideological successor of the historical Italian People's Party, which had the same symbol, a crossed shield ....
, the
Socialist Party
Italian Socialist Party
The Italian Socialist Party was a socialist and later social-democratic political party in Italy founded in Genoa in 1892.Once the dominant leftist party in Italy, it was eclipsed in status by the Italian Communist Party following World War II...
, and the Communist Party
Italian Communist Party
The Italian Communist Party was a communist political party in Italy.The PCI was founded as Communist Party of Italy on 21 January 1921 in Livorno, by seceding from the Italian Socialist Party . Amadeo Bordiga and Antonio Gramsci led the split. Outlawed during the Fascist regime, the party played...
. Smaller parties included the Italian Liberal Party
Italian Liberal Party
The Italian Liberal Party was a liberal political party in Italy.-Origins:The origins of liberalism in Italy came from the so-called "Historical Right", a parliamentary group formed by Camillo Benso di Cavour in the Parliament of the Kingdom of Sardinia following the 1848 revolution...
, heir of the pre-fascist and conservative ruling class, which proposed an alliance called National Democratic Union
National Democratic Union (Italy)
The National Democratic Union was a coalition of parties for the 1946 general election, formed basically by the Italian Liberal Party, the Labour Democratic Party and some other liberal, conservative and monarchist parties...
, monarchists groups that created National Bloc of Freedom
National Bloc of Freedom
The National Bloc of Freedom was a short-lived Italian political coalition of monarchist parties, most of which participated to the foundation of the National Monarchist Party...
, and the social liberal Action Party and Labour Democratic Party
Labour Democratic Party
The Labour Democratic Party was a social-liberal political party in Italy, founded in 1943 as the heir of defunct Italian Social Democratic Party, formed by those Socialists who wanted to cooperate with the Liberal political guard which governed Italy from the days of Giovanni Giolitti...
.
Results
The election gave a large majority to the government formed by the three leaders of the CLN, which were briefly joined by the Republican Party after the exile of Humbert II. The alliance lasted for a year.Here are the results of the Italian Constituent Assembly election of 1946.
| Party | vote | % vote | Seats | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christian Democracy Christian Democracy (Italy) Christian Democracy was a Christian democratic party in Italy. It was founded in 1943 as the ideological successor of the historical Italian People's Party, which had the same symbol, a crossed shield .... (Democrazia Cristiana, DC) |
8,101,004 | 35.21 | 207 | |
| Italian Socialist Party of Proletarian Unity Italian Socialist Party The Italian Socialist Party was a socialist and later social-democratic political party in Italy founded in Genoa in 1892.Once the dominant leftist party in Italy, it was eclipsed in status by the Italian Communist Party following World War II... (Partito Socialista Italiana di Unità Proletaria, PSIUP) |
4,758,129 | 20.68 | 115 | |
| Italian Communist Party Italian Communist Party The Italian Communist Party was a communist political party in Italy.The PCI was founded as Communist Party of Italy on 21 January 1921 in Livorno, by seceding from the Italian Socialist Party . Amadeo Bordiga and Antonio Gramsci led the split. Outlawed during the Fascist regime, the party played... (Partito Comunista Italiano, PCI) |
4,356,686 | 18.93 | 104 | |
| National Democratic Union National Democratic Union (Italy) The National Democratic Union was a coalition of parties for the 1946 general election, formed basically by the Italian Liberal Party, the Labour Democratic Party and some other liberal, conservative and monarchist parties... (Unione Democratica Nazionale) |
1,560,638 | 6.78 | 41 | |
| Front of the Ordinary Man Uomo Qualunque Front The Front of the Ordinary Man was a short-lived populist libertarian and poujadist party in Italy... (Uomo Qualunque, UQ) |
1,211,956 | 5.27 | 30 | |
| Italian Republican Party Italian Republican Party The Italian Republican Party is a liberal political party in Italy.The PRI is party with old roots that originally took a left-wing position, claiming descent from the political position of Giuseppe Mazzini... (Partito Repubblicano Italiano, PRI) |
1,003,007 | 4.36 | 23 | |
| National Bloc of Freedom National Bloc of Freedom The National Bloc of Freedom was a short-lived Italian political coalition of monarchist parties, most of which participated to the foundation of the National Monarchist Party... (Blocco Nazionale della Libertà) |
637,328 | 2.77 | 16 | |
| Action Party (Partito d'Azione, Pd'A) |
334,748 | 1.45 | 7 | |
| Sicilian Independentist Movement Sicilian Independentist Movement The Sicilian Independence Movement was a separatist Sicilian political party active in Sicily from 1943 to 1951... (Movimento Indipendentista Siciliano, MIS) |
171,201 | 0.74 | 4 | |
| Party of Italian Peasants Party of Italian Peasants The Party of Italian Peasants was a small Italian political party founded in 1920.Starting from social democratic and christian social ideas, the party moved to an independent ideological position, with the sole goal to defend the small farmers against the great landowners... (Partito dei Contadini d'Italia) |
102,393 | 0.44 | 1 | |
| Republican Democratic Concentration Republican Democratic Concentration The Republican Democratic Concentration was a liberal and republican list which contested in the Italian general election of 1946... (Concentrazione Democratica Repubblicana) |
97,690 | 0.42 | 2 | |
| Sardinian Action Party Sardinian Action Party The Sardinian Action Party is a regionalist social-democratic political party in Sardinia, which has recently sided with The People of Freedom, the largest centre-right party in Italy.-History:... (Partito Sardo d'Azione, PSd'Az) |
78,554 | 0.34 | 2 | |
| Italian Unionist Movement Italian Unionist Movement The Italian Unionist Movement was an Italian political party briefly in action just after the end of World War II. The goal of the party was the annexation of Italy to the United States.... (Movimento Unionista Italiano) |
71,021 | 0.31 | 1 | |
| Social Christian Party Social Christian Party (Italy) The Social Christian Party was a political party founded and led by the Italian philosopher and librarian of the Vatican Library Gerardo Bruni.... (Partito Cristiano Sociale) |
51,088 | 0.22 | 1 | |
| Labour Democratic Party Labour Democratic Party The Labour Democratic Party was a social-liberal political party in Italy, founded in 1943 as the heir of defunct Italian Social Democratic Party, formed by those Socialists who wanted to cooperate with the Liberal political guard which governed Italy from the days of Giovanni Giolitti... (Partito Democratico del Lavoro, DL) |
40,633 | 0.18 | 1 | |
| Republican Progressive Democratic Front Alliance PSI Italian Socialist Party The Italian Socialist Party was a socialist and later social-democratic political party in Italy founded in Genoa in 1892.Once the dominant leftist party in Italy, it was eclipsed in status by the Italian Communist Party following World War II... -PCI Italian Communist Party The Italian Communist Party was a communist political party in Italy.The PCI was founded as Communist Party of Italy on 21 January 1921 in Livorno, by seceding from the Italian Socialist Party . Amadeo Bordiga and Antonio Gramsci led the split. Outlawed during the Fascist regime, the party played... -PRI Italian Republican Party The Italian Republican Party is a liberal political party in Italy.The PRI is party with old roots that originally took a left-wing position, claiming descent from the political position of Giuseppe Mazzini... -PdA for Aosta Valley |
21,853 | 0.09 | 1 | |
| Others | 412,550 | 1.79 | 0 | |
| Total | 23,010,479 | 100.00 | 556 |
Together with the election, a constitutional referendum took place. Italian electors had to choose if they wanted to continue the reign of Humbert II of Savoy
Umberto II of Italy
Umberto II, occasionally anglicized as Humbert II was the last King of Italy for slightly over a month, from 9 May 1946 to 12 June 1946. He was nicknamed the King of May -Biography:...
or to turn Italy into a republic. While all regions of Northern Italy
Northern Italy
Northern Italy is a wide cultural, historical and geographical definition, without any administrative usage, used to indicate the northern part of the Italian state, also referred as Settentrione or Alta Italia...
as far as Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
and Marche
Marche
The population density in the region is below the national average. In 2008, it was 161.5 inhabitants per km2, compared to the national figure of 198.8. It is highest in the province of Ancona , and lowest in the province of Macerata...
s gave a majority to the republic, all regions of Southern Italy from Latium
Latium
Lazio is one of the 20 administrative regions of Italy, situated in the central peninsular section of the country. With about 5.7 million residents and a GDP of more than 170 billion euros, Lazio is the third most populated and the second richest region of Italy...
and Abruzzo
Abruzzo
Abruzzo is a region in Italy, its western border lying less than due east of Rome. Abruzzo borders the region of Marche to the north, Lazio to the west and south-west, Molise to the south-east, and the Adriatic Sea to the east...
voted to maintain the monarchy.
| Constitutional form of the Italian State | vote | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Republic Republic A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of... |
 |
12,718,641 | 54.3% |
| Monarchy Monarchy A monarchy is a form of government in which the office of head of state is usually held until death or abdication and is often hereditary and includes a royal house. In some cases, the monarch is elected... |
10,718,502 | 45.7% | |
| Invalid ballots |  |
1,509,735 | - |
| Total | 23,437,143 | 100% |