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October 2014


Vol. 1 Issue 1


Background
Italy first became a republic in 1948 when the Italian
people voted for the abolition of the monarchy. The
official name of Italy is Italian Republic (Republica
Italiana) and the official religion is Roman Catholicism.

There are 110 provinces in Italy.

Italys political system is based on the Constitution of
the Italian Republic. The politics are conducted by a
democratic republic with a multi-party system.
Important roles in the Italian government are the
president and the prime minister.

The Prime Minister

The prime minister of Italy is Mario Monti. The job of
prime minister was established in 1848. Some of the
prime ministers jobs include:
Able to nominate cabinet ministers to be
appointed by the president.
Countersigning all legislative instruments that
are signed by the president.
Coordinates and directs the activities of the
ministers.
Mediating between various parties.

However the prime minister does have less authority
than some of his counterparts. He is not authorized to
dismiss ministers, his political activities much be
approved by the Council of Ministers.

1. Prime Minister Mario Monti


2. President Giorgio Napolitano
The President
The president is elected by lawmakers, appoints
the constitution, and is the president of the
judiciary. He is also the commander-in-chief of
armed forces. The president is elected for a total
of seven years. The presidents powers include:
Send messages to Parliament.
Authorize the introduction of new bills by
the government.
Appoint state officials.
Make war declarations as approved by
Parliament.
Ratify international treaties

The Parliament
The Italian Parliament is a bicameral legislature
with 945 members elected. Its two house are the
Chamber of Deputies with 630 members and the
Senate of the Republic with 315 members. Both
houses have the same powers and duties with no
distinctions between them in the Constitution.

Judiciary of Italy
Only Italian citizens are allowed to be judges.
Once appointed judges serve for life and cannot
be removed. The Italian Judiciary is divided into
three parts: inferior courts of general and original
jurisdiction, intermediate appellate courts which
hear the cases on appeal from lower courts and
courts of last resort which hear appeals from
lower appellate courts on the interpretation of the
law.


Government System of Italy