Sartori’s grandchildren: the enduring legacy of a political science founder

The article focuses on the intellectual legacy of Giovanni Sartori, describing this figure as the “screenwriter” of an innovative project for Italian and European political science. Retracing the stages of Sartori’s journey as an author, academic leader, and scientific organizer, it highlights how other scholars have been able to build upon his work, showcasing the enduring impact of his vision. The article also provides data describing the scale and profile of the scientific community in Italy, since the phase of consolidation of political science, until nowadays. The analysis stresses the persistence of the original project designed by Sartori and sheds a light on the responsibilities of the “middle generation” of scholars in the dissemination of the discipline toward the new generations

The Fate of Political Scientists in Europe

This open access book offers a systematic survey of the attitudes and values of European political scientists. It builds a structural interpretation based on empirical data, as well as offering reflections on the future structure of the discipline. In the middle of a delicate phase of changes marked by the effects of pandemic and the war in Ukraine, we need to pay attention to the factors that are affecting not only the ‘objects’ of Political Science as a discipline but also its interactions with the world around it. First, this book asks to what extent the work of European political scientists is impacted by the current change. Second, their attitudes and predisposition about the future goals of the discipline are analysed. In the final chapter, the authors seek to understand to what extent a diffuse but still not completely institutionalized academic discipline will be able to produce a comprehensive impact around the European society, in order to be more visible and effective in policy making and policy processes

Pathways to power:Women's Representation in the 2014 European Parliament elections

The 2014 European Parliament (EP) elections produced a record proportion of women MEPs overall (37 per cent). Yet, these results vary widely across countries and parties. This article aims to explain these variations, evaluating not only who the elected representatives of the 8th European Parliament are, but also how they got there. Are the paths to the EP the same for women and men? Are there gender differences in terms of MEPs’ political experience? We utilise a unique data set listing more than 700 elected MEPs and their background, party and country characteristics to empirically examine who makes it to the EP and through which route. The results of the analysis suggest no significant gender differences in the pathways to the European Parliament. Yet, parties matter: more women were elected to the 8th EP from left-wing than from right-wing or ‘new’ parties, and both men and (especially) women representing right-wing parties tend to be politically more experienced than their fellow MEPs from other types of parties. Furthermore, we find that men are more likely than women to be promoted straight from party office to the European Parliament, suggesting that some pathways to the EP are less open to women than others

The Economic Crisis and its Effects on the Attitudes of Italian Political Elites Towards the EU

The Italian case is an interesting one for the study of the effects of the economic crisis on the attitudes of political elites. The crisis has been an important intervening factor in the process of domestic party system change. The responses to the challenges of EU-led austerity measures have been at the core of the discussion preceding the 2013 elections, whose results marked a turning point for the Italian political system, with protest votes peaking and new populist parties emerging. This article shows that, despite the domestic political turmoil, most of the markers of the traditional support of the Italian political elites for European integration are still unequivocal. These elites appear much more pro-European than the Italian public; even the representatives of the populist parties do not hold radical views that may reverse the past Italian history within the EU. At the same time, however, multivariate analyses of the determinants of elite attitudes show significant party variations. This brings us to speculate on some possible scenarios of gradual departure from the classic elite posture of acquiescence towards the EU

The Italian political class: two multilevel datasets on the profiles and opinions of elected politicians

The datasets on the Italian political class provides two sets of information: (a) census data on a broad spectrum of individual-level variables on elected politicians, offering an updated mapping of the characteristics of more than 20,000 Italian representatives at all governmental levels; (b) survey data on politicians' attitudes towards elections, participation, public opinion, several national and international policy issues, and their views of political representation. Between September 2020 and January 2021, 2134 elected politicians at the local (n = 1917), regional (n = 128), national (n = 75) and European (n = 14) levels were interviewed, making this one of the largest surveys of the Italian political elites ever conducted and a valuable resource for researchers interested in the study of democratic representation

More equal than different? Gender and legislative turnover in the European Parliament and west European legislatures

The article investigates incumbent exit rates of women and men parliamentarians in the national chambers and European Parliament delegations of eight West European countries after elections. Relying on original data, the article uses a multi-level model to analyse the fixed effects of gender, type of delegation, and the politico-institutional context on incumbent exit rates, while also assessing random effects produced at the country level. The study finds that incumbent exit rate of men is significantly higher than women's. However, this result is significant in the European Parliament, not national legislature delegations. Additionally, we find that men are pushed towards the exit by gender quotas and proportional electoral systems. Finally, our findings show different dynamics with respect to countries and types of delegation, thus expanding our understanding of the gendered implications of political careers and institutional frameworks across different parliamentary contexts in Western Europe

The Rise of Technocratic Ministers in Italy: Theories and Explanations

The rise of technocratic ministers in Italy represents an increasingly relevant phenomenon: in fact, it has been evident since the early nineties and has reached its apex during the 2010s. To assess the growing presence and significance of technocrats in Italian governments, we consider three major arguments: the role of critical junctures (crises), the impact of formateur’s strength, and the relevance of long-term systemic factors (complexity of policy-making; party decline). Thanks to an updated dataset on the Italian case (2001-2023) and employing a fresh taxonomy combining partisanship and expertise, the article provides a more accurate picture of ministers’ profiles in Italy, highlighting a role of expert ministers greater than expected and identifying a hierarchical relation among causal factors: critical junctures and formateur’s strength may represent proximate causes of the growing presence of technocratic ministers in Italy; however, these factors are heavily influenced by long-term causes such as the party decline.L’ascesa dei ministri tecnocratici in Italia rappresenta un fenomeno sempre più rilevante: infatti, è evidente sin dai primi anni Novanta e ha raggiunto il suo apice durante gli anni 2010. Per valutare la crescente presenza e importanza dei tecnocrati nei governi italiani, vengono considerati tre argomenti principali: il ruolo delle critical junctures (crisi), l’impatto della forza del formateur o capo del governo e la rilevanza dei fattori sistemici di lungo periodo (complessità del processo decisionale; declino dei partiti). Grazie a un dataset aggiornato sul caso italiano (2001-2023) e utilizzando una nuova tassonomia che combina appartenenza partitica e competenza, l’articolo fornisce un quadro più accurato dei profili dei ministri in Italia, evidenziando un ruolo dei ministri esperti maggiore del previsto e identificando una relazione gerarchica tra i fattori causali: le critical junctures e la forza del capo dell’esecutivo possono rappresentare cause prossime della crescente presenza di ministri tecnocratici in Italia; tuttavia, tali fattori sono fortemente influenzati da cause di lungo periodo come il declino dei partiti

NextGenerationEU and the European Semester: Comparing National Plans and Country‐Specific Recommendations

This article examines the main features of the Recovery and Resilience Plans (RRPs) that member states have presented to access NextGenerationEU (NGEU) funds, and it explores the relationship between NGEU and the European Semester. Relying on a dataset collected for this purpose, which coded all RRPs and all recommendations received by the member states in the years preceding NGEU, we explore quantitatively the variation in the countries’ resource allocation and reform agendas and the congruence between RRPs and the recommendations issued in the European Semester. Our analysis reveals three key findings. First, substantial variation exists across member states, reflecting the diverse economic and political contexts shaped by a decade of crises. Second, by disaggregating RRPs into the six policy pillars indicated by the Commission, we show differences in the member states’ patterns of intervention. Third, we offer insights into the extent to which member states address the Semester recommendations. The data we present is a relevant tool for understanding NGEU and generating research questions aimed at exploring its nature and its implementation in the years to come