Since the mid-1990s, Italy has made significant steps towards federalism, decentralizing political, fiscal and administrative powers, also by means of a major constitutional reform. Yet, 20 years after the beginning of this process, the country is experiencing problems in finalizing these reforms towards a stable federal architecture. This article examines Italy as a case of failed federalization. Adopting a long-term focus inspired by the 'gradual institutional change' approach, we argue that federalization has been trapped between a rather anomalous (and pathological) alliance between a persistent centralism, which prevailed when Italy was born as a state in 1861, and an ever-present strong tradition of localism. This approach allows us to show the very incremental nature of institutional change and to map changes and continuities along the 150 years of the Italian state, identifying both political and cultural factors that help to explain this unfulfilled journey towards federalism.

The regional elections of 28-29 March 2010 saw the indisputable victory of the center-right, which took over the presidency of four regions that had previously been held by the center-left, but they also brought about significant changes in the power relations within the two main groupings. The Partito Democratico (PD, Democratic Party) and the Popolo della Libertà (PdL, People of Liberty) emerged from the elections noticeably weakened, while there were gains for other alliance members within the coalitions. The Lega Nord (LN, Northern League), which for the first time took over the presidency of two important regions (Piedmont and Veneto), made the greatest gains, but the results were also good for Italia dei Valori (IdV, Italy of Values), which succeeded in gaining a more or less stable vote after its excellent showing in the previous general and European elections. The Unione di Centro (UdC, Union of the Center) decided on a strategy of variable alliances with the main coalitions, enabling it to take full advantage of its pivotal position, but it will be difficult to repeat this at the national level, at least under the current electoral rules. Outside the two main groupings, the surprising showing of the MoVimento 5 Stelle (Five Star Movement), led by the satirist Beppe Grillo, is certainly worthy of attention.All this should be seen within the context of a marked fall in voter turnout, which dropped to its lowest-ever level of 63.6 percent,

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