Marco Morini

The Italian 2014 EP Election: A Route to Euroscepticism?

Traditionally, Italians have always been considered as strongly europhile. However, in the most recent decade, opinion polls and Eurobarometer data show that Italy is becoming one of the most eurosceptic European Union (EU) countries. This chapter analyzes current and past Italian attitudes toward the EU, it investigates correlations between the decrease in EU trust and the negative performance of the most relevant economic indicators, and it devotes a special focus to the Northern League, the ‘veteran’ of Italian eurosceptic parties. By means of a description of earlier European Parliament (EP) elections in Italy and an analysis of the 2014 party platforms, this chapter shows how—for the first time in the history of Italian EP elections—the 2014 EP elections in Italy centered around EU issues.

Israel, ISIS and the Iran Nuclear Deal: The Comeback of the Middle East in the 2016 American Presidential Campaign

This chapter investigates the relevance of the Middle East issue in the 2016 American presidential campaign. After describing the early campaign’s international context and the past and current public opinion’s perception on foreign policy, the article analyses the primary candidates’ proposal on Middle East and other linked topics. The whole presidential primary campaign on both sides was full of references to the Middle East, often linked to other adjacent topics such as immigration and terrorism. Republicans are usually favoured by voters on foreign politics, while Democrats are preferred when it comes to welfare. As shown by electoral manifestos and TV debates, the Middle East issue also remained central in the Clinton v Trump final race. However, opinion polls and media coverage explained how the 2016 presidential campaign will probably be remembered for the harsh personal attacks exchanged against each other by the two nominees. The unexpected Donald Trump victory was certainly not driven by his statements on Middle East, but his presidency will probably be characterized by a completely new approach towards this region.

Front national and Lega Nord: two stories of the same Euroscepticism

ABSTRACT This article is focused on case-studies of the Front National in France and the Lega Nord in Italy. It shows analogies and differences between the two parties and then analyzes their attitudes towards Euroscepticism. The idea is that both in France and in Italy, Eurosceptic feelings are economically-driven and the two parties have been able to capitalize on this sentiment. Through an analysis of the correlation between Euroscepticism and economic indicators in the two nations and a similar study on the two parties’ electoral results, this research shows how only the Front National can be considered a pure anti-cyclical party, which maximizes its votes when the economic situation of the country is worsening. Probably on account of its various experiences in government, the Lega Nord’s results are not correlated with the negative trends of the Italian economy.

Urban-centred voters: the case of ‘L’Altra Europa con Tsipras’ in the 2014 European parliament elections in Italy

ABSTRACT In the 2014 European Parliamentary (EP) elections in Italy, ‘L’Altra Europa con Tsipras’ received about 1,100,000 votes (4.03 per cent), electing three Members of the European Parliament. Its narrow surmounting of the 4 per cent threshold was the result of an uneven distribution of support, with most of the votes concentrated in the biggest cities. In Rome, the Lista Tsipras (LT) got 6.17 per cent; in Milan, 6.48 per cent and in Bologna, 8.89 per cent. This article analyses the characteristics of the ‘urban-centred’ vote for the LT. It then identifies the factors that contributed to this result, showing, in light of the electoral history of the Italian radical left, how LT’ media coverage and the campaign schedules of its candidates help account for its success in urban areas.

The Power of Smears in Two American Presidential Campaigns

This article compares the two main cases of deceitful negative campaigning that characterized the American presidential campaigns of 2004 and 2008. These are, respectively, the attacks led by the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth against the military career and the subsequent pacifist turn of John Kerry and the smear, initially spread around the web, that claimed that Barack Obama was Muslim. This research describes the origins, developments, and outcomes of the two smear campaigns, focusing on the differences and similarities between them in terms of their content and their communication strategies. It then investigates the role played by the different media platforms employed by the negative campaigners, the importance of a prompt answer by the recipients of the accusations, and the response of public opinion. Finally, the comparison of the cases allows pointing out some conditions for the success or failure of mudslinging in contemporary American political communication.

Uno studio sulle Presidenziali americane : l'economia conta?

The economy matters. This is one of the dogmas taught us by those who have studied the history of the American presidential elections. But is this collective perception of the influence of economic data on individual electoral behaviour confirmed by statistical analysis of the history of presidential elections? This study shows that the most commonly used economic indicators are poor predictors of election outcomes, and also that variation in the approval rating of the incumbent president is a variable independent from the real economic data.