The End Of Post-war Politics In Italy: The Landmark 1992 Elections

The end of Italy's Communist Party and the decline of the Christian Democratic Party are reflections of profound changes taking place within the political and cultural fabric of that country and in Europe as a whole. In recent years, an increasingly well educated public has become intensely dissatisfied with Italy's "party system," yet a widespread belief still exists in the international community that the nation's domestic political system is irredeemably calcified. In this volume, eminent American and European scholars challenge the prevailing wisdom as they analyze the 1992 elections and the far-reaching impact of the Amato government's reform efforts, the devaluation of the lira, and shake-ups within the parties. Arguing that the losses suffered by the ruling parties in the elections accelerated the disintegration of the political order, the contributors show how the resulting exposure of corruption - an integral part of the post-war system - created overwhelming public demand for institutional reform.