The Christian Democrat Party: Fifty Years of Italian History

Born in the dark years of totalitarianism, the DC did not embody a preestablished model of development but sought to guide the country in its democratic evolution. It soon found itself in competition with Marxist left-wing parties, which aspired to an overall transformation of the state and society. The DC’s vision was grounded on a strong belief in interclass solidarity, that could lead the country toward a measured social ascent, thereby consolidating the democratic system as outlined by the republican Constitution. For more than three decades, it was this model that motivated the DC governments. The agrarian reform of 1950, the subsequent adoption of planned economic policies and the gradual expansion of state intervention in the economy, the formation of the centre-left coalition in the early 1960s, and finally, the dialogue with the PCI promoted by Aldo Moro in the 1970s, were all significant steps on this path. In the 1980s, the DC failed to provide a clear response to the challenges of the decade and was unable to adapt by updating its politics as the situation required. Its resistance to change would ultimately prove fatal.