Quirinale · Palazzo Chigi · Montecitorio · Palazzo Madama
A parliamentary
republic.
Italians elect Parliament; Parliament and the regions elect the President; the President appoints a government, which lives only as long as it keeps the confidence of both chambers.
Who holds office · 4 November 2026
The offices
of state.
-
President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella Since 3 February 2015 Re-elected on 29 January 2022 on the eighth ballot; second term ends February 2029 -
President of the Council of Ministers Giorgia Meloni Since 22 October 2022 · FdI Meloni I, the 68th government of the Republic -
Deputy President of the Council Antonio Tajani Since 22 October 2022 · FI Also Minister of Foreign Affairs -
Deputy President of the Council Matteo Salvini Since 22 October 2022 · Lega Also Minister of Infrastructure and Transport -
President of the Senate Ignazio La Russa Since 13 October 2022 · FdI Deputises for the President of the Republic (art. 86) -
President of the Chamber of Deputies Lorenzo Fontana Since 14 October 2022 · Lega -
President of the Constitutional Court Giovanni Amoroso Since 21 January 2025 Francesco Viganò, elected on 28 October 2026, takes over on 14 November
Photos: Sergio Mattarella — Official Photo, Attribution · Giorgia Meloni — Governo Italiano, CC BY 3.0 it · Antonio Tajani — European People's Party, CC BY 2.0 · Matteo Salvini — European Union, Attribution · Ignazio La Russa — LucaFazPhoto, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Lorenzo Fontana — Saeima, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Giovanni Amoroso — Unknown author Unknown author, Attribution . Via Wikimedia Commons.
The Council of Ministers · Meloni I
Twenty-four
ministers.
Fratelli d'Italia 8, independents 6, Forza Italia 5, Lega 5. Gianmarco Mazzi replaced Daniela Santanchè at Tourism on 3 April 2026, after the referendum.
- FIAntonio Tajani
Foreign Affairs - IndMatteo Piantedosi
Interior - IndCarlo Nordio
Justice - FdIGuido Crosetto
Defence - LegaGiancarlo Giorgetti
Economy and Finance - FdIAdolfo Urso
Enterprise and Made in Italy - FdIFrancesco Lollobrigida
Agriculture and Food Sovereignty - FIGilberto Pichetto Fratin
Environment and Energy Security - LegaMatteo Salvini
Infrastructure and Transport - IndMarina Elvira Calderone
Labour and Social Policies - LegaGiuseppe Valditara
Education and Merit - FIAnna Maria Bernini
Universities and Research - IndAlessandro Giuli
Culture - IndOrazio Schillaci
Health - FdIGianmarco Mazzi
Tourism - FdILuca Ciriani
Relations with Parliament - FIPaolo Zangrillo
Public Administration - LegaRoberto Calderoli
Regional Affairs and Autonomies - FdINello Musumeci
Civil Protection and Sea Policies - IndAndrea Abodi
Sport and Youth - FdIEugenia Maria Roccella
Family, Birth Rate and Equal Opportunities - FIMaria Elisabetta Alberti Casellati
Institutional Reforms - LegaAlessandra Locatelli
Disabilities - FdITommaso Foti
European Affairs, PNRR and Cohesion
Ministers: governo.it ↗; party labels from secondary sources.
Articles 92–94
The confidence
of both chambers.
The President of the Republic appoints; Parliament decides whether a government survives.
- Consultations
After an election or a crisis the President receives the party leaders and the presidents of the chambers at the Quirinale.
- The mandate
The President asks a figure to form a government; they accept "con riserva", then name their ministers.
- The oath
The government is sworn in at the Quirinale and takes office.
- Two votes of confidence
Within ten days it must win a motion of confidence in the Chamber and in the Senate, by a majority of those voting.
- The "questione di fiducia"
A government can stake its life on a bill: the vote becomes a confidence vote, amendments fall, and a defeat means it must resign. The 2026 electoral law passed after three.
- A crisis
A motion of no confidence needs a tenth of a chamber's members to sign it. Most governments have fallen to coalition quarrels rather than votes.
Article 83 · January 2022
Electing
a President.
Deputies, senators and 58 delegates of the regional councils meet in Montecitorio and vote in secret, ballot after ballot, each paper read aloud by the President of the Chamber. In 2022, 1,009 grand electors needed eight ballots and a week to re-elect Sergio Mattarella, who had said he did not want a second term.
| Ballot | Date | Needed | Mattarella | Blank | Abstained | What happened |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 Jan | 673 | 16 | 672 | 0 | Both blocs vote blank |
| 2 | 25 Jan | 673 | 39 | 527 | 0 | Blank again |
| 3 | 26 Jan | 673 | 125 | 412 | 0 | Last ballot needing two-thirds |
| 4 | 27 Jan | 505 | 166 | 261 | 441 | Centre-right abstains |
| 5 | 28 Jan | 505 | 46 | 11 | 406 | Casellati gets 382 and falls short |
| 6 | 28 Jan | 505 | 336 | 106 | 444 | Abstentions; Mattarella rises |
| 7 | 29 Jan | 505 | 387 | 60 | 380 | Leaders agree to ask him to stay |
| 8 | 29 Jan | 505 | 759 | 25 | 0 | Re-elected for a second term |
By February 2029
The next
grand electors.
After the 2020 cut the assembly shrinks by a third: 400 deputies, 205 senators (including 5 for life) and 58 regional delegates — 663 in all.
Plus the regional delegates, chosen by each council "so that minorities are represented". The President must be at least 50 and serves seven years.
The rest of the state
Who checks
whom.
- ParliamentPerfect bicameralism
The Chamber (400) and the Senate (200 elected, elected regionally, plus life senators) have identical powers: a bill shuttles between them until both pass the same text (the "navetta").
- Constitutional CourtFifteen judges
Five chosen by the President, five by Parliament in joint session, five by the higher courts, for nine years. It struck down parts of two electoral laws (2014, 2017).
- President of the RepublicThe guarantor
Can dissolve the chambers, sends laws back once, appoints the government and five life senators, chairs the Superior Council of the Magistracy.
- RegionsTwenty, five special
Elected councils and presidents; Valle d'Aosta, Trentino-Alto Adige, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Sicily and Sardinia have statutes with wider powers. Regions →
- Municipalities7,896 comuni
Mayors directly elected, with a run-off in towns over 15,000. Provinces have been indirectly elected since 2014.
- The peopleReferendums
Abrogative referendums can repeal laws; constitutional ones confirm or reject reforms. Referendums →