Party of Italian Communists

Party of Italian Communists
Partito dei Comunisti Italiani
Leaders Armando Cossutta
Oliviero Diliberto
Cesare Procaccini
Founder Armando Cossutta
Founded 11 October 1998
Dissolved 11 December 2014
Split from Communist Refoundation Party
Succeeded by Communist Party of Italy
Headquarters Piazza Augusto Imperatore, 32
00186 Rome
Newspaper La Rinascita della Sinistra
Youth wing Youth Federation of Italian Communists
Membership (2012) 12,500[1]
Ideology Communism
Political position Left-wing
National affiliation The Olive Tree (1998–2005)
The Union (2005–2008)
European affiliation Party of the European Left (observer)
International affiliation None
European Parliament group GUE/NGL (1998–2009)
Colors      Red
PdCI flag flown in Carrara (2007)

The Party of Italian Communists (Italian: Partito dei Comunisti Italiani, PdCI) was a communist party in Italy founded in October 1998 as a split from the Communist Refoundation Party (PRC) led by Armando Cossutta, the founder and early leader of the PRC.[2] In December 2014, the party was transformed into Communist Party of Italy (PCd'I), which would later evolve into the re-edition of the Italian Communist Party (PCI).

History

Foundation and early years

In October 1998, the PRC was divided between those who wanted to stop supporting Romano Prodi's first government, led by PRC secretary Fausto Bertinotti; and those who wanted to continue the alliance, led by PRC president Cossutta. The central committee endorsed Bertinotti's line, but Cossutta and his followers decided to support Prodi whatsoever. The votes of cossuttiani were not enough and the government lost a confidence vote in Parliament. The dissidents, who controlled the majority of deputies and senators, split and formed a rival communist outfit, the PdCI, which immediately joined the first cabinet led by Massimo D'Alema, leader of the Democrats of the Left and first post-communist to hold the job of Prime Minister of Italy. Under D'Alema, PdCI's Oliviero Diliberto served as Minister of Justice.

Despite the split of most of PRC's parliamentary representation, the PRC remained more popular than the PdCI with voters, both in the 1999 European Parliament election (4.3% to 2.0%) and the 2001 general election (5.0% to 1.7%).

Leadership of Diliberto

Diliberto, who had been elected secretary in 2000, led the PdCI to continue its participation in the centre-left coalition (known at the time as The Olive Tree) at the 2001 general election, which registered a victory by Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right House of Freedoms coalition. The PdCI obtained 1.7% of the vote and a handful of deputies and senators.

In the 2006 general election, the party was a member of the winning The Union coalition and won 2.4% of the vote and 16 deputies[2] while the Together with the Union electoral list consisting of the PdCI, the Federation of the Greens and United Consumers won 11 senators.[3] Subsequently, the PdCI entered Prodi's second government, which would last until January 2008.

In the meantime, Diliberto had become the undisputed leader of the party and since 2005 clashes between him and Cossutta became frequent. In 2006, the latter resigned from president and was replaced by Antonino Cuffaro. In 2007, Cossutta left the party altogether.

For the 2008 general election, the PdCI formed a joint list named Rainbow Left (SA) along with the PRC, the Greens and Democratic Left under Bertinotti's leadership. SA obtained a mere 3.1% (compared to 10.2% won by the constituent parties individually two years before) and no seats. In 2008, Diliberto was re-elected secretary and proposed to the PRC a re-unification of the two parties through a "communist constituent assembly".[4]

Out of Parliament

In the run-up of the 2009 European Parliament election, the PdCI formed along with the PRC and minor groups the Anticapitalist and Communist List.[5] The list got 3.4% of the vote and no MEPs. In April 2009, the list was transformed into the Federation of the Left,[6][7] which would be disbanded by the end of 2012[8] and officially dissolved in 2015.[9] In the 2013 general election, the PdCI ran within Civil Revolution along with the PRC, the Greens, Italy of Values and minor groups, gaining 2.2% of the vote and no seats.[10] The PdCI did not contest the 2014 European Parliament election, withdrawing its early support for The Other Europe electoral list.

Before and after the 2009 European election, the PdCI lost its right- and left-wings, respectively. In February, Unite the Left, led by Katia Belillo (a former minister) and Umberto Guidoni (an incumbent MEP), left the party in order to participate in the election with the Left and Freedom list and would eventually merge into Left Ecology Freedom. In June, Marco Rizzo (the other incumbent MEP and former Diliberto's number two) was expelled[11] and would later form the hard-line Communist Party.

In July 2013, Diliberto stepped down from secretary after thirteen years and was replaced by Cesare Procaccini, a 65-year-old former metalworker from Marche.[1]

Communist Party of Italy

In December 2014, the PdCI was transformed into Communist Party of Italy, taking the name of the late Communist Party of Italy.[12]

Election results

Italian Parliament

Chamber of Deputies
Election year No. of
overall votes		 % of
overall vote		 No. of
overall seats won		 +/– Leader
2001 620,859 1.7
0 / 630
–
 Oliviero Diliberto
2006 884,127 2.3
16 / 630
Increase 16
 Oliviero Diliberto
2008 with SA
–
0 / 630
Decrease 16
 Oliviero Diliberto
2013 with Civil Revolution
–
0 / 630
–
Oliviero Diliberto
Senate of the Republic
Election year No. of
overall votes		 % of
overall vote		 No. of
overall seats won		 +/– Leader
2001 with The Olive Tree
–
2 / 315
–
 Oliviero Diliberto
2006 with The Union
–
5 / 315
Increase 3
 Oliviero Diliberto
2008 with SA
–
0 / 315
Decrease 5
 Oliviero Diliberto
2013 with Civil Revolution
–
0 / 315
–
Oliviero Diliberto

European Parliament

European Parliament
Election year No. of
overall votes		 % of
overall vote		 No. of
overall seats won		 +/– Leader
1999 622,261 (12th) 2.0
2 / 87
–
 Oliviero Diliberto
2004 787,613 (8th) 2.4
2 / 78
–
 Oliviero Diliberto
2009 1,038,247° (6th) 3.4
0 / 72
Decrease 2
 Oliviero Diliberto
2014 Did not run
–
0 / 73
–
 Cesare Procaccini

°The PdCI was part of Anticapitalist and Communist List.

Symbols

Leadership

References

  1. 1 2 "Pdci, eletto nuovo segretario - Politica - ANSA.it".
  2. 1 2 Tom Lansford, ed. (2014). Political Handbook of the World 2014. SAGE Publications. p. 712. ISBN 978-1-4833-3327-4.
  3. ↑ Tom Lansford, ed. (2013). Political Handbook of the World 2013. SAGE Publications. p. 715. ISBN 978-1-4522-5825-6.
  4. ↑ "Diliberto rieletto segretario del Pdci, contro la minoranza: non rispettato il pluralismo".
  5. ↑ "Pdci e Prc, lista unitaria il 6 giugno
    "Anticapitalisti, con la sinistra europea"    .
  6. ↑ "Per un nuovo inizio: costruiamo insieme la federazione della sinistra di alternativa".
  7. ↑ "Al via la nuova Federazione della sinistra".
  8. ↑ "Le primarie spaccano la Fds".
  9. ↑ "Atto di scioglimento di associazione politica" (PDF).
  10. ↑ "Elezioni 2014".
  11. ↑ "Lite con Diliberto, Rizzo fuori dal Pdci: «Sono capro espiatorio per le sconfitte»" .
  12. ↑ "Ritorna il Partito comunista d'Italia: il Pdci si riprende la denominazione del 1921".

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