The 1996 political elections have confirmed the electoral importance and stability of the Northern League in the North-east of Italy. The party's strongholds are located in ‘industrial districts’, specific socio-economic areas where local communities and small and medium businesses merge. This paper argues that the resilience and indeed increasing success of the League in these northern areas since its appearance in the 1980s can be explained largely on the basis of their industrial need to move towards a regional representation and organisation, capable of providing the services required by an increasingly competitive market.
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