Partecipazione politica e diritto di voto degli stranieri in Italia: una disciplina work in progress

The right of foreigners to vote in Italy has historically been a contentious issue. This paper aims to set out the main stakes of this debate, where the concept of citizenship adopted in the Italian legal system is a crucial topic. In contrast to other countries in Europe, in Italy the most central argument against the possibility of extending voting rights is the text of art. 48 of the Constitution. This provision recognises the political participation rights only for citizens according to a merely formal dimension of citizenship. Completely different is the case of the introduction of the European citizenship: citizens of the Union have been granted voting rights thanks to the directive 94/80/CE.