Regional Council (Italy)

Regional Council (Consiglio regionale) is the name of the elected legislative assembly of a Regione of Italy, excluded Sicily and Valley of Aosta, which parliament's name is, respectively, Sicilian Regional Assembly (Assemblea regionale siciliana) and Council of the Valley (Consiglio della Valle).

Origins

The regional idea was born, in Italy, during the national Risorgimento and the first decades after the Unity, but any proposal was rejected until the Second World War.

After the collapse of Fascism and the end of the war a violent independence movement that led to the institution of the region and the concession of the Statute, based on the model of federal States was born in Sicily.

A similar route followed Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Sardinia, Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol and Valley of Aosta.

The other regions was instituted, officially, by the Constitution of 1948, but first elections of regional Councils happened in 1970.

Powers

Counsels, initially, had the power to elect the president and other members (assessors) of regional government (Giunta Regionale).

With the constitutional reforms of 1999 and 2001, they lost these powers (because the president is elected by the people and the assessors are appointed by the president). On the other hand the regional counsels obtained a lot of new legislative powers, including the regional electoral system, that before was decided by the State.

Electoral system

Until the 90's, all councils were elected with a proportional representation. In order to prevent political instability, a new electoral law, called Legge Tatarella, was introduced for the ordinary regions in 1995, and gradually extended with little changes to the other regions. Nowadays, the coalition of parties which receives the biggest number of votes, obtains the absolute majority of the Council's seats, and its leader is elected as the President of the Region. In Aosta Valley the President is elected by the Council. In Trentino- South Tirol, the Council is the joint session of the two Provincial Councils, each one with its own electoral law.

See also

• Regional Council of Veneto