How to Select Citizen Candidates: The Movimento 5 Stelle Online Primaries and their Implications

In late November 2012 Beppe Grillo’s blog announced that the Five Star MoVement was going to select its candidates for the forthcoming general election through online primaries. In this chapter we evaluate such process with respect to different dimensions. First of all we analyse the rules for passive and active electorate that were put in place by the party leadership and evaluate their impact on the inclusiveness of the competition. Secondly, since these primaries were conducted entirely online, we address the role of the internet and social media in candidates’ repertoire of communication and campaign.We also evaluate the outcomes of the primaries in terms of the characteristics of the candidates placed in higher positions in the party lists as a result of the online primaries. Finally, we offer some reflections on the process employed by the M5S to select its candidates for the 2014 European Parliament election.