The Centrist Victory in Italy
SENIGALLIA, SILVIO F.
AN APPRAISAL OF The Centrist Victory in Italy By Silvio F. Senigallia Rome Now that the political air here has cleared and returns are complete on the nationwide elections of city and provincial...
...In any event, despite the still deadlocked city councils, there is no sign of a national political crisis developing at present...
...AN APPRAISAL OF The Centrist Victory in Italy By Silvio F. Senigallia Rome Now that the political air here has cleared and returns are complete on the nationwide elections of city and provincial governments, held the last Sunday in May, the most significant fact to emerge is this: The trend of the 1953 national elections, which failed to give the ruling pro-Western coalition an absolute majority, has been reversed...
...Paradoxically, however, the immediate result of the May 27 elections was to weaken the so-called centrist formula and the present Government coalition...
...This display of increased confidence in the moderate pro-Western parties is unquestionably evidence of the vitality of Italy's young democratic republic, which celebrated its tenth anniversary just five days after the elections...
...On the Social Democratic side, it means that many Socialists see their success at the polls as a sign to move away from the clerical and often right-wing influences of the Christian Democrats...
...In fact, a large part of Saragat's party has interpreted Communist losses as a trend toward democracy within the Italian working class and urged its encouragement by a reunification of the two Socialist factions...
...The summer months seem sure to provide a breathing spell, and the real test of Premier Antonio Segni's cabinet will probably take place in the fall...
...Those with more conservative leanings fear that a unified Socialist party...
...In spite of the widespread gains scored by Pietro Nenni's Left Socialists at the expense of the Communists --once again raising the issue of a political "opening to the left"--the Christian Democratic National Council has barred any local deals with them in the North or with the rightists in the South...
...The Center parties secured a fairly large absolute majority, amounting to a mandate for continuation of their nine-year rule...
...The Socialist-Communist Left, which likes to consider itself the only spokesman of all the people, failed to get more than one-third of the total vote...
...But the voters foiled them completely...
...This is not the first time that a clash between Vice Premier Giuseppe Saragat's Social Democrats and the Liberals has led to difficulties for the Government coalition, but the present situation is complicated by two new factors: (1) The Social Democrats and Liberals have just scored considerable gains in an election which, according to more than one political analyst, was supposed to wipe them off the political map...
...Indeed, the real winners of the contest were the conservative Liberal party and the Social Democrats...
...Thus, the strengthening of both of them has resulted in a political tug-of-war, facing the Christian Democrats with a choice between a right-of-center and a left-of-center policy which they have tenaciously refused to make...
...Its decision was motivated by fear that a pact with Nenni's group would mean an indirect alliance with the Communists, since the two are tied by a "unity of action" agreement...
...Many, including Christian Democratic President Giovanni Gronchi, are reportedly ready to move from the Center to the anti-Communist Left...
...The Monarchist-Fascist right, always quick to label other political formations "anti-national" or "a-national," received a mere 10 per cent of the vote...
...This is because the Liberals and Social Democrats aim to make the rather static majority party steer, respectively, a more conservative and a more progressive course...
...Although this brought a negative reaction from the Social Democrats' larger allies and stirred up some opposition among its own right-wingers, Party Secretary Matteo Matteotti-was authorized to discuss unification terms with Nenni...
...2) In 163 town and city councils across the country, the elections resulted in a deadlock, and the Christian Democratic plan for minority rule by the Center parties does not seem to be a workable solution...
...on the Left Socialist side, it means that many Socialists realize the time has come to disengage themselves from the Communists...
...The Social Democrats, on the other hand, have voted in favor of collaboration with Nenni's followers in the city councils and advocate, under certain conditions, a merger with them...
...These developments are encountering mixed feelings among the various factions of the majority party...
...The extremists had hoped to increase the gains they scored three years ago at the expense of the minor middle-of-the-road parties now supporting the Christian Democrats...
...freed of any Communist taint, might eventually become Italy's majority party...
...True, the balloting was merely for administrative positions, but the results are important because all the parties waged their campaigns as a rehearsal for the next national elections...
...This would have forced the latter to turn for support to the Communists or Fascists...
...These talks got under way on June 6, and, while it is not likely that Nenni will agree to a clean break with the Communists, the mere fact that Socialist unity is being discussed is significant...
Vol. 39 • July 1956 • No. 27
