di Francesca Biondi Dal Monte

SOMMARIO: 1. Premessa. Nuove forme di pubblicità e voto parlamentare. – 2. Il voto segreto nei regolamenti parla-mentari. – 3. Svelare il voto segreto al momento della votazione. – 4. Svelare il voto segreto espresso mediante schede. – 5. Voto segreto e “dichiarazioni di voto” al tempo della rete. – 6. La comunicazione politica tra ricerca di consensi e pentimenti. – 7. Svelare il voto al partito o agli elettori?. – 8. Rilievi conclusivi. Quali riflessi in termini di rappresentanza politica?

The essay analyzes the cases in which the parliamentary rules allow the secret ballot and some events in which parliamentarians have disclosed their vote, either during the vote procedure in the Parliament house or after that, through the new communication tools such as social media.
These behaviors have led to an interaction between members of the Parliament and electorate that bypasses any intermediary bodies - such as political parties - looking for a direct relationship between representative and repre-sented people (elected and voter), in terms of both visibility and approval and confirmation of the parliamentari-an’s activity.
This analysis aims at stimulating a reflection on the changes that the concept of “representation” and the principle of the “ban of binding mandate” are encountering, in a context where the forms and tools of political communica-tion and the perception of the parliamentary activity are changing.

di Alessandro Chiaramonte

SOMMARIO: 1. I sistemi elettorali di Camera e Senato dopo le sentenze della Corte costituzionale. – 2. Le differenze tra i sistemi di Camera e Senato e i potenziali effetti sugli esiti elettorali. – 3. L'obbiettivo dell'armoniz-zazione dei sistemi di Camera e Senato, entro ed oltre l'impianto esistente. – 4. Una proposta per una riforma minimalista.

Under rulings no. 1/2014 and no. 35/2017, the Constitutional Court struck down a number of provisions of the electoral laws no. 270/2005 and no. 52/2015, respectively. This article analyses the electoral systems for the Chamber of deputies and for the Senate resulting from the Constitutional Court’s rulings, focusing on their dif-ferences and their potential effects on the election outcome. The need for an harmonization of the two electoral systems is emphasized and a proposal of an incremental electoral reform is advanced.

di M. Cristina Grisolia

SOMMARIO: 1. La discrezionalità delle Camere in materia elettorale e il controllo riconosciuto dalla Corte alla magi-stratura. – 2. La sentenza n. 35 del 2017. I vincoli dettati dalla Corte alla discrezionalità delle Camere. - 3. Un ulteriore limite richiamato dalla Corte e dal Capo dello Stato: la funzionalità della forma di gover-no. – 4. La discrezionalità delle Camere in materia elettorale. Un assioma non più attuale?

The essay examines the limits given by the Constitutional Court to the Parliament’s electoral material. One sub-ject, before being left to the complete discretion of Parliament, but today it is the object of many controls.

di Francesca Martines

SOMMARIO: 1. Premessa. – 2. Norme internazionali applicabili alla presenza del Marocco nel Sahara Occidentale. – 3. Violazioni gravi di norme di jus cogens e obblighi di non-riconoscimento in capo a soggetti terzi. – 4. Il contributo dell’Unione Europea all’affermazione del diritto di autodeterminazione del Sahara Occi-dentale. – 5. Osservazioni conclusive.

Observance of international law is considered an identity value of the European Union. The commitment towards international law is provided for in the Treaty, it is ensured by the ECJ, while EU institutions commonly profess their respect towards it. However, there are some discomforting examples where respect for international law is sacrificed to the altar of political realism. A recent ECJ judgment, excluding the application to the territory of Western Sahara of a EU-Morocco trade liberalization agreement, provides the occasion for the EU to opera-tionalize the (vague) international law obligation of non-recognition of serious violations of jus cogens. The main issue discussed in this paper is how can the EU contribute to the respect for the right to self-determination of Western Sahara by avoiding reinforcing the illegal presence of Morocco in this non-self-governing territory. The actions of EU institutions are crucial not only for the future relationship with an important EU commercial part-ner in an area of geopolitical concern, but also for the contribution to international law of the EU practice, which can clarify the more general issue of the obligation of third countries to refrain from actions that can help or fa-vour illegal actions of other states.

di Emanuele Rossi

The work analyzes the current electoral system, following sent. no. 35/2017 of the Constitutional Court, with specific reference to the criteria in place for the election of the candidates within the lists: it is considered in particular, on this aspect, the precedent established by sent. no. 1/2014, noting the substantial continuity with it. It is also analyzed the impact of the decision of the Court (with specific regard to the elimination of the runoff) on the balance between candidates elected in a closed list (through the mechanism of “list-headers”) and candidates elected in open lists with preference vote, assessing the extent to which the maintenance of the possibility of being candidate in more than one constituency affects this balance. In this framework, some critical remarks on the current system are made from the point of view of parliamentary representation and – more generally – on the political legitimacy of MPs.

di Giovanni Tarli Barbieri

SOMMARIO: 1. La riforma elettorale dopo la sent. n. 35/2017. – 2. La necessità di un intervento del legislatore: il con-sultellum. – 3. Gli altri motivi che rendono necessario un intervento del legislatore. – 4. La prospettiva problematica del “ritorno” alle leggi Mattarella.

The essay analyses issues and problems concerning electoral laws for national Parliament, following the decision of Italian Constitutional Court n. 35/2017. In particular, the Author explores the consequences of this constitutional ruling on the legislation that remains in force, with particular regard to the election of the Senate and the restrictions for legislature in the making of future electoral laws.