72

This essay analyzes how the French presidential elections of 1981 and François Mitterrand’s victory were followed and interpreted in Italy, primarily through the lens of the press (which, during the 1980s, enjoyed its golden age in Italy, reaching an unprecedented circulation). In particular, the analysis was conducted through a systematic review of the main Italian opinion newspapers, Corriere della Sera and La Stampa (accompanied by a non-systematic study of the communist daily newspaper L’Unità). For the first time in the history of the Fifth Republic, the Left conquered the Élysée, despite the rift between the PCF and the PS, showing the possibility of political change and the vitality of the Fifth Republic’s institutions. This outcome inevitably drew the attention of Italian observers, grappling with a “blocked” and deeply troubled political and party-political context, and struggling to leave behind the heavy legacy of terrorism and the years of turmoil. The victory of the Socialist candidate was gradually presented in Italy as the natural outcome of France's dynamism and the overwhelming aspiration of the French for economic and social renewal. It is impossible not to read a comparison with the Italian political scene, which—compared to France—seemed to lag behind in the three areas of politics, communication, and institutions. The crisis of parties and the impasse of the political system multiplied the number of voices in Italy calling for a reform of a “blocked” system, with a strong parliament and a weak government, seemingly legitimizing the French model at the precise moment when the concrete possibility of political change and the end of the right-wing monopoly of the Fifth Republic’s institutions demonstrated its vitality and non-authoritarian nature. The reaffirmation of the principles of governmental transition and the Right and Left's shared ownership of the Fifth Republic following Mitterrand's election in 1981 contributed to reopening the debate on electoral and institutional reform in Italy. This was also due to the novelty of the first governments led by non-Christian Democrat politicians, proposing a series of reforms aimed at strengthening the executive, including the direct election of the President of the Republic by universal suffrage.