2019 Basilicata regional election

Last updated

2019 Basilicata regional election
Flag of Basilicata.svg
←  2013 24 March 2019 2024  →
All 21 seats to the Regional Council of Basilicata
Turnout53.52% (Increase2.svg 3.92%)
 Majority partyMinority partyThird party
  Generale Vito Bardi.jpg No image available.svg No image available.svg
Candidate Vito Bardi Carlo TrerotolaAntonio Mattia
Party Forza Italia Independent [nb 1] Five Star Movement
Alliance Centre-right Centre-left
Seats won1353
Seat changeIncrease2.svg 8Decrease2.svg 8Increase2.svg 1
Popular vote124,71697,86660,070
Percentage42.2%33.1%20.3%
SwingIncrease2.svg 22.8%Decrease2.svg 26.5%Increase2.svg 7.1%
Basilicata 2019 election map.png
President before election

Flavia Franconi (acting)
PD

Elected President

Vito Bardi
FI

The 2019 Basilicata regional election took place on 24 March 2019. The election was for all 21 seats of the Regional Council of Basilicata and the president of Basilicata, who automatically became a member of the council alongside the second-placed candidate. This election was the last one in Italy before the 2019 European Parliament election and the third one of the 2019 Italian regional elections.

Contents

While the original election date was 26 May 2019, a snap election was called upon the resignation of the then incumbent president Marcello Pittella, a member of the Democratic Party, on 24 January 2019. After the subsequent dissolution of the Regional Council, the vice-president Flavia Franconi, also a member of the Democratic Party, became the acting president, while Carlo Trerotola was chosen as the candidate.

The election was won by the centre-right coalition and their presidential candidate Vito Bardi of Forza Italia, amid a divided centre-left coalition that was also marred by scandals. It was the centre-right coalition's first regional win in Basilicata since direct elections have been held since 1995 and Bardi was the first right-wing president since the office was established in 1970.

Background

The election was called on 20 November 2018, with the chosen date being 26 May 2019. [1] It was later moved to 24 March 2019 after Marcello Pittella's resignation as president. Since the 1995 Basilicata regional election, the centre-left coalition had won each regional election with a large margin. In the 2018 Italian general election, both the centre-right coalition and the M5S substantially improved their performance; for the first time, the centre-right tied with the centre-left (including Free and Equal, which in 2018 was not a member of the coalition led by Democratic Party), and the Five Star Movement won about double the votes gained by the Democratic Party and Free and Equal combined in the Chamber of Deputies. [nb 2] Due to the centre-left coalition's rooting in the region prior to the centre-right coalition's win, which ended the centre-left coalition's 24-year rule, [2] Basilicata was considered to be politically the Emilia-Romagna of Southern Italy and Southern Italy's red region. [3] [4]

Electoral system

In 2018, a new electoral law was established for the 2019 regional election. The new electoral law follows proportional representation with a threshold of 3% for party lists and 4% for lists in coalitions that failed to reach the 8% threshold. If the first coalition wins 30% of the vote, the parties collectively receive 11 (55%) to 14 seats (67%). For the presidential election, a candidate needs to win by a simple majority (first-past-the-post). [5] To cast his vote, the voter can make a single mark on the name of a presidential candidate, and in this case the vote is not transmitted to any party list. If the voter marks the symbol of one of the lists, the vote is automatically transferred to the candidate supported by that list. [6] Since the approval of the new regional electoral law in 2018, split voting is not possible, i.e. voting on a list and a candidate who is not supported by it. [7]

According to the Tatarella Law of 1995 still in force, in addition to the newly elected president, the candidate for president of the coalition who ranks second automatically gains one seat (the first of his coalition or single party list) in the Regional Council. The remaining 19 seats are be assigned on a province basis, proportionally with respect to the population of the provinces of Potenza and Matera. The voter can express two preferences, reserving the second to a candidate of a different sex, otherwise the second preferences will not be valid. [8] Among the innovations are the introduction of gender equality (each party list cannot have more than 60% of candidates of the same sex) and the abolition of the price list and of the split vote. [9]

Campaign

On 20 February 2019, Marcello Pittella, who was endorsed by the Democratic Party and the Lucanian Radicals, [10] [11] announced he would not run for a second term, [12] [13] [nb 3] and decided to support Carlo Trerotola, the new centre-left candidate. [15] With the retirement of Pittella, the majority of the left-wing Free and Equal returned in the centre-left coalition with the list Progressives for Basilicata. [16] A joint list of left-wing parties ran alone with Valerio Tramutoli as its presidential candidate. [17]

The presidential candidate of the centre-right coalition was Vito Bardi, an independent politician and former general of Guardia di Finanza who later joined Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia. [18] [19] The presidential candidate of the Five Star Movement was Antonio Mattia. [20] [21] The presidential candidate of Lega Sud Ausonia, a regional party that usually ran alone, Antonio Postorivo, [22] was excluded due to bureaucratic issues. [23]

Political parties and candidates

Political party or allianceConstituent listsPrevious resultCandidate
Votes (%)Seats
Centre-left coalition Democratic Communities – Democratic Party (PD)24.84
Carlo Trerotola
Italian Socialist Party (PSI)7.51
Federation of the Greens–Reality Italy (FdV–RI)5.9 (RI)1 (RI)
Progressives for Basilicata (incl. Art.1)——
Forward Basilicata (AB)——
Trerotola for President (CD – Popular Project) (incl. PRI)——
Basilicata First——
Centre-right coalition Forza Italia (FI)12.32
Brothers of Italy (FdI)5.11
League (Lega)——
Identity and Action (IDeA)——
Positive Basilicata – Bardi for President (BP)——
Five Star Movement (M5S)9.02
Antonio Mattia
Possible Basilicata (incl. SI, PRC, DemA)——
Valerio Tramutoli

Opinion polls

DatePolling firmTrerotolaBardiMattiaTramutoliUndecidedLead
24 Mar 2019Election results33.142.220.34.4N/A9.1
5–8 Mar 2019 Venum
(without undecided)		35.038.022.05.00.03.0
5–8 Mar 2019 Venum
(with undecided)		26.128.716.53.824.92.6

Results

24 March 2019 Basilicata regional election results
Basilicata Regional Council 2019.svg
CandidatesVotes%SeatsPartiesVotes%Seats
Vito Bardi 124,71642.201 League 55,39319.156
Forza Italia 26,4579.143
Brothers of Italy 17,1125.911
Identity and Action 12,0944.181
Positive Basilicata–Bardi for President11,4923.971
Total122,54842.3612
Carlo Trerotola97,86633.111Forward Basilicata24,9578.632
Democratic Communities – Democratic Party 22,4237.652
Progressives for Basilicata12,9084.46–
Italian Socialist Party 10,9133.77–
Basilicata First9,7483.37–
Democratic Centre – Popular Project 9,5593.30–
Federation of the Greens–Reality Italy 5,4921.90–
Total96,00033.184
Antonio Mattia60,07020.32– Five Star Movement 58,65820.273
Valerio Tramutoli12,9124.37– Possible Basilicata 12,1244.19–
Invalid votes11,624–
Total candidates307,188100.002Total parties289,330100.0019
Registered voters573,97053.52
Source: Ministry of the Interior – Results
Popular vote
M5S
 
20.27%
Lega
 
19.15%
FI
 
9.14%
AB
 
8.63%
PD
 
7.65%
FdI
 
5.91%
PpB
 
4.46%
Pos
 
4.19%
IDeA
 
4.18%
BP–Bardi
 
3.97%
PSI
 
3.77%
PB
 
3.37%
Trerotola
 
3.30%
FdV–RI
 
1.90%
President
Bardi
 
42.20%
Trerotola
 
33.11%
Mattia
 
20.32%
Tramutoli
 
4.37%

Results by province

ProvinceBardiTrerotolaMattiaTramutoliTurnout
Potenza 82,244
(41.01%)		69,016
(34.41%)		40,103
(20.00%)		9,183
(4.58%)		52.40%
Matera 42,472
(44.70%)		28,850
(30.36%)		19,967
(21.01%)		3,729
(3.92%)		56.03%

Results by capital city

CityBardiTrerotolaMattiaTramutoliTurnout
Potenza 15,688
(40.55%)		11,863
(30.6%)		7,558
(19.54%)		3,576
(9.24)		68.79%
Matera 10,969
(37.51%)		7,740
(26.47%)		9,039
(30.91%)		1,492
(5.10%)		59.88%

Seats by province

Province Lega PD FI M5S FdI OthersTotal
Potenza51220212
Matera1111127

Voter turnout

RegionTime
12:0019:0023:00
Basilicata 13.31%39.73%53.52%
ProvinceTime
12:0019:0023:00
Matera 13.08%40.82%56.03%
Potenza 13.42%39.24%52.40%
Source: Ministry of the Interior – Turnout

Notes

  1. ↑ Carlo Trerotola was an independent politician close to the Democratic Party.
  2. ↑ See "Camera 04/03/2018 Area Italia (escl. Valle d'Aosta) – Circoscrizione Basilicata". Eligendo Archivio (in Italian). 8 March 2018. Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  3. ↑ At the time, Pittella was a divisive figure within the centre-left coalition, and was being investigated since 6 July 2018; he was arrested and placed under house arrest on charges of being the deus ex machina of a system of rigged competitions for the assignment of roles in regional healthcare. Due to the Severino Law, he resigned as president of Basilicata at the beginning of 2019. On 22 December 2021, the Court of Matera acquitted him of all charges and rejected the request for three years in prison presented by the public prosecutor as part of what came to be known as the Sanitopoli lucana scandal, while seven managers of healthcare companies had instead been sentenced to sentences between two and five years. Pittella said: "These have been difficult, hard years. I was a front-page monster. But I always had the faith that time could reveal the truth." On 1 March 2024, the Potenza Court of Appeal confirmed the acquittal of Pittella. [14]

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References

  1. ↑ "Convocazione dei comizi per l'elezione del Presidente della Giunta e del Consiglio Regionale della Basilicata" (PDF). Regione Basilicata (in Italian). 21 November 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 December 2021. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  2. ↑ "Elezioni Basilicata, Bardi presidente con il 42%. Centrosinistra cade dopo 24 anni e perde la sesta Regione. M5s al 20%". Il Fatto Quotidiano (in Italian). 25 March 2024. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  3. ↑ Borghese, Salvatore (25 March 2019). "Il voto in Basilicata in 5 punti". YouTrend (in Italian). Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  4. ↑ Ferrara, Pierfrancesco (14 March 2024). "Regionali in Basilicata, quando si vota e gli scenari". Sky TG24 (in Italian). Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  5. ↑ Rizzuti, Stefano (15 March 2019). "Elezioni regionali Basilicata 2019, chi sono i candidati alla presidenza di Regione". Fanpage.it (in Italian). Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  6. ↑ Berlini, Alberto (22 March 2019). "Elezioni Basilicata, nella sfida tra Lega e 5 stelle il Pd può tenere la Regione?". Today (in Italian). Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  7. ↑ Pizzimenti, Chiara (23 March 2019). "Regionali in Basilicata, come e quando si vota". Vanity Fair Italia (in Italian). Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  8. ↑ "Regionali 2019 | Tutto quello che c'è da sapere sul voto in Basilicata". Il Quotidiano del Sud (in Italian). 17 March 2019. Archived from the original on 21 March 2019. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  9. ↑ "Elezioni regionali in Basilicata, come e quando si vota: tutto quello che c'è da sapere". Sky TG24 (in Italian). 20 March 2019. Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  10. ↑ Leccese, Domenico (1 February 2019). "Maurizio Bolognetti (Radicali) sostiene la candidatura di Marcello Pittella a governatore regione basilicata". Le Cronache Lucane (in Italian). Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  11. ↑ Risola, Mara (7 February 2019). "Regionali, Cifarelli conferma il suo endorsement: 'Pittella è il candidato giusto'". La Nuova (in Italian). Archived from the original on 9 February 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  12. ↑ "Pd, Pittella (indagato) annuncia il passo indietro alle Regionali e scoppia in lacrime: 'È tutto così assurdo'". Il Fatto Quotidiano. 20 February 2019. Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  13. ↑ "Elezioni Basilicata, Pittella è il candidato più votato. Gli eletti del centrosinistra? Tutti 'suoi'. E due sono sotto inchiesta". Il Fatto Quotidiano (in Italian). 25 March 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  14. ↑ "Marcello Pittella, l'ex presidente lucano assolto anche in Appello nel processo 'Sanitopoli'". Il Fatto Quotidiano (in Italian). 1 March 2024. Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  15. ↑ Tundo, Andrea (20 February 2019). "Basilicata, il Pd candida l'indagato Pittella alle Regionali. Ma Leu e parte dei dem dicono no e lui rinuncia". Il Fatto Quotidiano. Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  16. ↑ Calvo, Rudy Francesco (20 February 2019). "Pittella regista dell''operazione speziale' che ricompatta il centrosinistra in Basilicata". HuffPost Italia (in Italian). Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  17. ↑ "Tramutoli, una Basilicata 'carbon free'". Agenzia ANSA (in Italian). 24 February 2019. Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  18. ↑ Gagliardi, Andrea; Marini, Andrea (18 February 2019). "Basilicata: Fi-Lega uniti puntano a spodestare il centrosinistra (diviso in due). M5s in difesa". Il Sole 24 Ore (in Italian). Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  19. ↑ "'La Basilicata rinascerà, il centrodestra è pronto': Vito Bardi parla della sua sfida difficile ma esaltante". Secolo d'Italia. 24 February 2019. Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  20. ↑ "Mattia, M5S: Pronto a firmare 'L'impegno per la Basilicata' proposto da Generazione Lucana". Basilicata24 (in Italian). 27 January 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  21. ↑ Gagliardi, Andrea; Marini, Andrea (26 February 2019). "Dopo il crollo in Sardegna, strada in salita per M5S anche in Basilicata". Il Sole 24 Ore (in Italian). Archived from the original on 20 January 2020. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  22. ↑ "Elezioni Regione Basilicata: 2 liste escluse! Forse scende a 4 il numero dei candidati alla carica di Presidente". Potenza News (in Italian). 26 February 2019. Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  23. ↑ "Elezioni Basilicata, fuori 2 liste: 4 governatori in corsa". La Gazzetta del Mezzogiorno (in Italian). 25 February 2019. Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
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