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List of presidents of Italy facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
  • Top left: Enrico De Nicola was the first president of the Italian Republic.
  • Top right: Antonio Segni was the first president to resign from office.
  • Bottom left: Giorgio Napolitano was the first president to be re-elected.
  • Bottom right: Sergio Mattarella is the current president of the Italian Republic and the longest-serving president in Italian history.

The president of Italy (Italian: Presidente della Repubblica) is the head of state the Italian Republic. Since 1948, there have been 12 presidents of Italy.

The official residence of the president is the Quirinal Palace in Rome. Among the Italian presidents, three came from Campania (all from Naples), three from Piedmont, two each from Sardinia (both from Sassari) and from Tuscany, one from Liguria, and one from Sicily. No woman has ever held the office.

Election

The president of the Republic is elected by Parliament in a joint session of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. In addition, the 20 regions of Italy appoint 58 representatives as special electors. Three representatives come from each region, save for the small Aosta Valley which appoints one, so as to guarantee representation for all localities and minorities.

According to the Constitution, the election must be held in the form of secret ballot, with the 315 senators, the 630 deputies and the 58 regional representatives all voting. A two-thirds vote is required to elect on any of the first three rounds of balloting and after that a majority suffices. The election is presided over by the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, who calls for the public counting of the votes. The vote is held in the Palazzo Montecitorio, home of the Chamber of Deputies, which is expanded and re-configured for the event.

The president assumes office after having taken an oath before Parliament and delivering a presidential address. Presidents are elected to serve a seven-year term. Giorgio Napolitano is the first president to be elected to a second term in 2013, followed by Sergio Mattarella in 2022.

Presidents of the Italian Republic (1948–present)

      PLI           DC           PSDI           PSI           DS           Independent
Portrait Name
(Born–Died)
Term of office Party Election Ref.
Took office Left office
Enrico De Nicola (cropped).jpg Enrico De Nicola
(1877–1959)
1 January 1948 12 May 1948 Italian Liberal Party 1947
132 days
Luigi Einaudi official portrait.jpg Luigi Einaudi
(1874–1961)
12 May 1948 11 May 1955 Italian Liberal Party 1948
6 years, 364 days
Giovanni Gronchi.jpg Giovanni Gronchi
(1887–1978)
11 May 1955 11 May 1962 Christian Democracy 1955
7 years, 0 days
Antonio Segni Official 1962.jpg Antonio Segni
(1891–1972)
11 May 1962 6 December 1964 Christian Democracy 1962
2 years, 209 days
Giuseppe Saragat (cropped).jpg Giuseppe Saragat
(1898–1988)
29 December 1964 29 December 1971 Italian Democratic Socialist Party 1964
7 years, 0 days
Presidente Leone.jpg Giovanni Leone
(1908–2001)
29 December 1971 15 June 1978 Christian Democracy 1971
6 years, 168 days
Sandro Pertini Official.jpg Sandro Pertini
(1896–1990)
9 July 1978 29 June 1985 Italian Socialist Party 1978
6 years, 355 days
Cossiga Francesco.jpg Francesco Cossiga
(1928–2010)
3 July 1985 28 April 1992 Christian Democracy 1985
6 years, 300 days
Oscar Luigi Scalfaro portrait.jpg Oscar Luigi Scalfaro
(1918–2012)
28 May 1992 15 May 1999 Christian Democracy 1992
6 years, 352 days
Ciampi ritratto.jpg Carlo Azeglio Ciampi
(1920–2016)
18 May 1999 15 May 2006 Independent 1999
6 years, 362 days
Presidente Napolitano.jpg Giorgio Napolitano
(1925–2023)
15 May 2006 14 January 2015 Democrats of the Left /
Independent
2006
2013
8 years, 244 days
Sergio Mattarella Official (cropped).jpg Sergio Mattarella
(born 1941)
3 February 2015 Incumbent Independent 2015
2022
9 years, 292 days

Timeline

Sergio Mattarella Giorgio Napolitano Carlo Azeglio Ciampi Oscar Luigi Scalfaro Francesco Cossiga Sandro Pertini Giovanni Leone Giuseppe Saragat Antonio Segni Giovanni Gronchi Luigi Einaudi Enrico De Nicola

Substitute of the head of state

The Acting President of the Republic (Italian: Presidente supplente della Repubblica) is an office not explicitly provided for in the Italian Constitution, but deriving from the provision contained in the article 86. On various occasions, officials had to intercede in the absence of a head of state (notably in the case of a president's resignation or ill health). Only Enrico De Nicola, who was elected to be provisional head of state by the Constitutional Assembly on 28 June 1946, had an official title and took residence in the Quirinal Palace. The others took the powers, but not the title of Head of State. After the adoption of the Italian Constitution in 1948, the president of the Senate is eligible to take the powers of head of state in case of absence of the President of the Republic.

      DC           PLI           PRI           PPI           PD           Independent
Portrait Name
(Born–Died)
Term of office Party Election Ref.
Took office Left office
Alcide de Gasperi 2.jpg Alcide De Gasperi
(1881–1954)
13 June 1946 1 July 1946 Christian Democracy
18 days
Enrico De Nicola (cropped).jpg Enrico De Nicola
(1877–1959)
1 July 1946 31 December 1947 Italian Liberal Party 1946
1947
1 year, 183 days
Cesare Merzagora.jpg Cesare Merzagora
(1898–1991)
6 December 1964 29 December 1964 Independent
23 days
Amintore Fanfani Senato.jpg Amintore Fanfani
(1908–1999)
15 June 1978 9 July 1978 Christian Democracy
24 days
Cossiga Francesco.jpg Francesco Cossiga
(1928–2010)
29 June 1985 3 July 1985 Christian Democracy
4 days
Giovanni Spadolini 2.jpg Giovanni Spadolini
(1925–1994)
28 April 1992 28 May 1992 Italian Republican Party
30 days
Nicola Mancino 1996.jpg Nicola Mancino
(born 1931)
15 May 1999 18 May 1999 Italian People's Party
3 days
PresidentePietroGrasso.jpg Pietro Grasso
(born 1944)
14 January 2015 3 February 2015 Democratic Party
20 days

See also

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