Exploring Autonomism: Asymmetry and New Developments in Italian Regionalism

The article proposes an original theoretical framework for the study of the political and, above all, institutional dimensions of autonomism. It points out the differences between autonomism and regionalism, the former being a variety of the latter, and between autonomism and federalism, with which autonomism shares some features. It also offers a closer analysis of the forms and logics of the de jure asymmetry that characterizes autonomism as an institutional model. Such a theoretical model, able to broaden the analytical categories for the study of territorial arrangements, is then used to interpret the historical evolution and recent development of Italian regionalism. The launch of differentiated regionalism in Italy constitutes an autonomist turning point, following the abandonment of federalism. It moves from the recognition of regional diversity, and is characterized by an open and very asymmetric distribution of power, as well as bilateral relations between individual regions and the State. The article concludes by reflecting both on the innovative potential and on the criticalities of the autonomist turn of Italian regionalism.