Party Mandates and Policy Agendas in Italy’s Yellow-Green Government

After weeks of febrile negotiations following the 2018 parliamentary elections, the Lega (L) and the Five Star Movement (M5S) agreed to form a coalition government on a common policy platform, called ‘the contract for a government of change’. Challenging many expectations, the yellow-green government survived already one year. How did this happen? Who benefited the most? To address these questions the paper builds on the literature on party mandates and policy agendas to provide an overview of the interparty policy agreements that promoted the formation of the government and the policies implemented. The study uses qualitative content analysis of party manifestos, passed legislation and parliamentary speeches as its main sources of data analysis. The results show that the policy agenda of the yellow-green government are mostly focused on immigration and social policy. These outcomes are not rewarding for both parties. In the eve of the 2019 EP elections, these outcomes allowed the Lega to obtain policy benefits and strengthen its popularity, while the Five Star Movement faces serious polling setbacks.