Abstract

This article examines the territorial composition of Italian governments since 1976. Prior studies, covering the 1948-1976 period, have shown how Italian governments were highly representative from a territorial viewpoint. Their composition reflected the distribution of electors across the country in such a way as to give each region a share of cabinet posts roughly proportional to its share in the overall electoral strength of governing parties weighted by its share of the total electorate. Regression analysis of 1976-2001 data show that, on the whole, this pattern of cabinet seat distribution has not changed over time. From legislature to legislature, however, differences do exist and the explicatory power of this model is somehow limited when applied to the 1996-2001 term. A brand new innovation as compared to the 1948-76 period consists instead of the presence of a growing number of non-MP executive members. However, one, must distinguish between non-partisan non-MP government members and partisan government members who are simply not members of the parliament. The former have been especially frequent during the years 1992-1994; the latter after 1996.