Alliance of Progressives Alleanza dei Progressisti | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Leader |
|
| Founded |
|
| Dissolved |
|
| Succeeded by | The Olive Tree |
| Political position | Left-wing[1][2] |
TheAlliance of Progressives (Italian:Alleanza dei Progressisti) was aleft-wing[1][2]political alliance ofparties in Italy formed in 1994, with relevant predecessors at local level in 1993.[3][4] The leader of the alliance wasAchille Occhetto.[5] The alliance was a predecessor of the modern-daycentre-left coalition.
The Alliance of Progressives was formed in the wake ofTangentopoli and the end of the so-called First Republic, when the once-dominantChristian Democrats (DC) and four other establishment parties collapsed and were replaced by new political formations during 1992–1994, while theItalian Communist Party had earlier in 1991 abandoned communism and reformed itself as theDemocratic Party of the Left (PDS).[3][6]
The PDS was the core party of the Alliance, which also included theCommunist Refoundation Party, theFederation of the Greens, the remnantItalian Socialist Party andSocialist Rebirth, DC splinterSocial Christians, the anti-MafiaNetwork andDemocratic Alliance, the latter formed by formerRepublicans andSocialists.[3][7] The Alliance was formed in part as a response to the Italian electoral system moving to a more majoritarian system.[8]
The Alliance suffered a decisive defeat in the1994 general election by thecentre-right coalition led bySilvio Berlusconi, which was organised as thePole of Freedoms innorthern Italy andPole of Good Government insouthern Italy.[3] In the election both left-wing and centre-right coalitions also competed with thePact for Italy, acentrist alliance formed by DC successor theItalian People's Party (PPI) and theSegni Pact.[1][9]
For the1995 regional election and1996 general election the Alliance was succeeded by a broadercentre-left coalition led byRomano Prodi known asThe Olive Tree, which included the PPI (diminished by the split of theUnited Christian Democrats in 1995), Segni Pact andItalian Renewal, but excluding the Communist Refoundation Party, which was an external ally and presented its candidates under the "Progressives" banner in some single-seat constituencies.[5][8]
The alliance was composed of:[4][10]
| Election | Leader | Chamber of Deputies | Senate of the Republic | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Seats | -/+ | Position | Votes | % | Seats | -/+ | Position | ||
| 1994 | Achille Occhetto | 12,632,680 | 32.81 | 213 / 630 | New | 2nd | 10,881,320 | 32.90 | 123 / 315 | New | 2nd |
| 1996 | Fausto Bertinotti | 982,505 | 2.62 | 15 / 630 |  198 | 5th | 934,974 | 2.87 | 10 / 315 | 113 | 4th |
