Giorgio Napolitano Elected President of
Italy: Former Communist
The ANNOTICO Report
Giorgio
Napolitano, an Italian life Senator, was elected as
The
80-year-old senator won 543 votes, well above the minimum 505-vote mark, during
the fourth round by more than 1,000 voters.
The
center-left president-elect is to succeed President Carlo Azeglio
Ciampi, 85, whose seven-year mandate expires on May
18.
Napolitano,
a former interior minister and House speaker, is the second-oldest president to
take office after Sandro Pertini,
who was elected in 1978 at the age of 82.
The first
three rounds of voting had failed, in which a two-thirds majority was required
to decide the winner.
The Democratic
Left, of which Napolitano is also a member, is the largest party in
Premier-elect Romano Prodi's coalition and the main
heir to the PCI.
The
Italian head of state is elected in a joint session by deputies, senators and
representatives of
Under the
Constitution, the first three ballots require a two-thirds majority for a
winner to emerge. If the voting produces no result, the rules relax to a
straight majority from the fourth ballot on.
The
electors began voting on Monday for the new president and the previous three rounds
went without a decision. By contrast, outgoing President Ciampi
was elected on the first ballot.
How the head of state was elected and what his powers are
ANSA,
Life Senator Giorgio Napolitano was
elected president of
The senator, who turns 81 next
month, succeeds President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi whose seven-year mandate expires on May 18.
Napolitano is
He was elected on the fourth round of voting by members
of parliament and regional representatives.
Following is an explanation of the election procedures
for the president and his role and powers.
WHO ELECTS THE PRESIDENT The president is elected in a
joint session by the 630 members of the House, the 322 members of the Senate
and 58 regional delegates. Each region appoints three delegates, two
representing the majority and one the opposition. The only exception is
VOTING PROCEDURES The 1,010 'grand electors', as they
are known, gather in the House to vote. The House speaker presides over the
secret voting with the Senate speaker at his side. By tradition, the senators
vote first, followed by the House members and then the regional delegates.
It often takes a number of ballots for a winner to
emerge. Under the Constitution, a two-thirds majority of 674 votes is required
for a candidate to be elected on the first, second or third ballots. After
that, a simple majority of 506 votes is required.
Napolitano was elected on the fourth round of voting on
the votes of the centre-left coalition led by incoming premier Romano Prodi.
Ciampi was elected president in 1999 on a first ballot in an unusual
show of unity, receiving 707 votes out of a possible 990. But it took 13 days
to elect his predecessor Oscar Luigi Scalfaro in 1992
with 16 rounds of voting.
Only two other presidents apart from Ciampi
were elected in one bout of voting:
ROLE AND POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT Under Italy's 1948
Constitution, the head of state must be over 50 and serves a seven-year
mandate. The Senate Speaker acts as deputy president.
Regarded as the impartial guarantor of the Constitution,
the president is meant to be above the party fray and represent national unity.
He is the titular head of the Council of Magistrates (CSM), the judiciary's
self-governing body, and the head of the armed forces.
In practice he has limited powers, holding no veto over
legislation and playing no role in foreign policy. But it is his task to give
the winner of
The president must sign parliamentary bills into law. He
can send laws back to parliament if he thinks they are unconstitutional or
lacking the necessary financial cover. He may only do
this once - after which parliament passes the law (usually but not always
amended).
The president is entitled to appoint five new life
senators during his mandate. A third of
Although the president's role is largely ceremonial, the
office has assumed a higher profile in recent years with both Ciampi and, more controversially, his predecessor Scalfaro stepping into the political arena to offer
opinions on government policy and other issues. Given his high office, the
president's statements, however vague and non-committal, are dissected for
signals of approval or criticism. Premiers often pay lip service to them and
carry on regardless. But they may be swayed by the mood of the country,
particularly if a president is very popular and their own position is weak.
The outgoing government of Silvio
Berlusconi passed a sweeping constitutional reform trimming the powers of the
president and increasing those of the premier. The reforms will be put to a
referendum in June since they did not gain two-thirds support in parliament.
The centre-left coalition headed by Prodi wants them overturned.
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