Regions of Italy
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The Regions of Italy were granted a degree of regional autonomy in the 1948 constitution, which states that the constitution's role is: to recoginize, protect and promote local autonomy, to ensure that services at the State level are as decentralized as possible, and to adapt the principles and laws establishing autonomy and decentralization.
However, five regions (Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Sardinia, Sicily, Trentino-South Tyrol, and Aosta Valley) have been granted a special status of autonomy based on cultural grounds and on the presence of important minorities. Each region has an elected council and a Giunta Regionale (executive committee) headed by a president. The Giunta is responsible to the council and is required to resign if it fails to retain the council's confidence. Regional governments are thus analogous in structure to the national government.
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Provincial and communal governments follow similar principles: councils and giunte headed by provincial presidents or communal mayors.
Regional autonomy has been made an issue in Italian politics in recent years, no doubt aided by the emergence of parties such as the Lega Nord.
| Region | Capital |
|---|---|
| 1. Abruzzo (sometimes Abruzzi) | L'Aquila |
| 2. Aosta Valley (Val d'Aoste, Valle d'Aosta) | Aosta (Aoste) |
| 3. Apulia (Puglia) | Bari |
| 4. Basilicata | Potenza |
| 5. Calabria | Catanzaro |
| 6. Campania | Naples (Napoli) |
| 7. Emilia-Romagna | Bologna |
| 8. Friuli-Venezia Giulia | Trieste |
| 9. Latium (Lazio) | Rome (Roma) |
| 10. Liguria | Genoa (Genova) |
| 11. Lombardy (Lombardia) | Milan (Milano) |
| 12. Marches (Marche) | Ancona |
| 13. Molise | Campobasso |
| 14. Piedmont (Piemonte) | Turin (Torino) |
| 15. Sardinia (Sardegna) | Cagliari |
| 16. Sicily (Sicilia) | Palermo |
| 17. Trentino-South Tyrol (Trentino-Alto Adige/Trentino-S?l) | Trento and Bozen-Bolzano |
| 18. Tuscany (Toscana) | Florence (Firenze) |
| 19. Umbria | Perugia |
| 20. Veneto | Venice (Venezia) |