The legislative representation of public opinion policy priorities in Italy

Bibliographic Data

ID6277067
AuthorsFrancesco Visconti (0000-0001-7672-4433, University of Siena, corresponding author)
Year2018
Volume48
Issue3
Pages307-326
Publication date2018-11-01
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueItalian Political Science Review/Rivista Italiana di Scienza Politica (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0048-8402 • E-ISSN: 2057-4908
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/ipo.2018.4
OpenAlexW2789996101
LanguageEN
Citations received7
References cited64

Normative democratic theory requires political actors in parliament and government to represent not only the citizens’ policy preferences, but also their issue priorities. This article investigates Italian dynamic agenda representation – the transmission of public priorities into the policy priorities of the Italian political system. To assess the public’s policy priorities, data on the Most Important Problem from the Eurobarometer polls are used, while the legislative agendas of the members of parliament (MPs) and government are built following the rules of the Comparative Agendas Project. The results of longitudinal analyses across 10 policy areas and 20 semesters (2003–13) suggest a persistent link between the public’s agenda and the prioritization of legislation by the Italian parliament, majority MPs, and government. Contrary to expectations, the opposition does not seem to be responsive to public opinion policy problems when introducing bills

Economic policy · Economics · Eurobarometer · European union · Government (linguistics · Legislation · Legislature · Normative · Opposition (politics · Parliament · Policy studies · Political science · Politics · Public opinion · Public policy · Representation (politics · Electoral Systems and Political Participation · Law · Political Influence and Corporate Strategies · Political Systems and Governance · Public Administration

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