110. Editorial Note
The Italian administrative elections, held on May 27 and 28, were closely watched by the United States to ascertain present and future Italian political trends. In a memorandum to Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Elbrick, May 24, Deputy Director of the Office of Western European Affairs William R. Tyler pointed out that the importance of the elections revolved around the fact that the Nenni Socialists were seeking a popular endorsement that would force the Christian Democrats to cooperate with them in the formation of a new reformist, neutralist government. The Center was hoping to stress the subservience of Nenni and Togliatti to Moscow by exploiting the support of both for de-Stalinization. The memorandum speculated that the elections would result in no radical changes and in little shift in party alignment. (Department of State, EUR Files: Lot 59 D 252, Local Elections, 1956)
In telegram 4049 from Rome, May 31, the Embassy reported that early returns indicated little change in the status of the three major parties, with the center making small gains, and the left and right sustaining small losses. (Ibid., Central Files, 765.00/5–3156) In a memorandum to Secretary Dulles, June 4, Jacob Beam stated that the two most significant results of the election were the increased popular support for the Center Coalition, and the shift within the left from the Communists to the Nenni Socialists. An attached analysis of the election results attributed the Center’s success to the pro-Western policies followed by the Italian Government since 1953, the changing policy lines of the Soviet Union (de-Stalinization), and the U.S. policies of [Page 361] supporting the Center and the free trade unions through OSP screening procedures [less than 1 line of text not declassified]. (Ibid., 765.00/6–456)