Giorgio Napolitano

President of Italy from 2006 to 2015

Giorgio Napolitano (29 June 1925 – 22 September 2023) was an Italian politician who was the 11th President of Italy from 2006 to 2015.[1] He was the first Italian president to be re-elected to the office.[2][3] From 1992 to 1994, he was the President of the Chamber of Deputies. From 1996 to 1998, he was the Minister of the Interior during the Romano Prodi government.

Giorgio Napolitano
Official portrait, 2006
11th President of Italy
In office
15 May 2006 – 14 January 2015
Prime MinisterRomano Prodi
Silvio Berlusconi
Mario Monti
Enrico Letta
Matteo Renzi
Preceded byCarlo Azeglio Ciampi
Succeeded bySergio Mattarella
President of the Chamber of Deputies
In office
3 June 1992 – 14 April 1994
Preceded byOscar Luigi Scalfaro
Succeeded byIrene Pivetti
Minister of the Interior
In office
18 May 1996 – 21 October 1998
Prime MinisterRomano Prodi
Preceded byGiovanni Rinaldo Coronas
Succeeded byRosa Russo Iervolino
Additional offices
Member of the Senate
In office
14 January 2015 – 22 September 2023
In office
23 September 2005 – 15 May 2006
For life
Member of the European Parliament
In office
20 July 1999 – 19 July 2004
ConstituencySouthern Italy
In office
25 July 1989 – 10 June 1992
ConstituencySouthern Italy
Member of the Chamber of Deputies
In office
5 June 1968 – 8 May 1996
ConstituencyNaples
In office
25 June 1953 – 15 May 1963
ConstituencyNaples
Personal details
Born(1925-06-29)29 June 1925
Naples, Campania, Kingdom of Italy
Died22 September 2023(2023-09-22) (aged 98)
Rome, Italy
Political partyIndependent (2006–2023)
Other political
affiliations
PCI (1945–1991)
PDS (1991–1998)
DS (1998–2006)
Spouse(s)
(m. 1959)
Children2
Alma materUniversity of Naples Federico II
Signature

Before becoming president, Napolitano was a member of the Chamber of Deputies, Senate and European Parliament.

In office for 8 years and 244 days, he was the longest-serving president, until the record was passed by Sergio Mattarella in 2023. He also was the longest-lived president in the history of the Italian Republic.[4]

He was elected on 10 May 2006 on the fourth ballot, with 543 votes out of 1009 (the required number was 505), but he took office as president only on 15 May 2006, after Carlo Azeglio Ciampi's time was finished.

He was voted mostly by the left-wing coalition led by Prime Minister Romano Prodi, head of the Italian Government. Napolitano was preceded at his job by Carlo Azeglio Ciampi. He was nicknamed King George by his critics.[5]

Napolitano resigned as President of Italy on 14 January 2015 due to his old age.

Napolitano was born in Naples. He studied at University of Naples Federico II. In 1959, he married Clio Maria Bittoni. They had two children.

Napolitano was hospitalized in Rome on 29 June 2023, shortly after his 98th birthday.[6] He died on 22 September 2023 at the age of 98.[7]

References

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  1. http://www.quirinale.it/qrnw/statico/lingue/en/en-nap-biografia.htm
  2. Cook, Bernard A. (25 May 2019). Europe Since 1945: An Encyclopedia. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9780815340584 – via Google Books.
  3. "Addio a Giorgio Napolitano, fu il primo comunista a diventare Capo dello Stato e il primo a essere rieletto". La Stampa (in Italian). 22 September 2023. Retrieved 22 September 2023.
  4. Bincher, Fosca (22 September 2023). "Tutti i numeri da record di Giorgio Napolitano. Ma nel Palazzo più longevi di lui Andreotti e Scalfaro". Open (in Italian). Retrieved 22 September 2023.
  5. Donadio, Rachel (2 December 2011). "From Ceremonial Figure to Italy's Quiet Power Broker". The New York Times. Retrieved 31 January 2014.
  6. "Napolitano's already critical health condition getting worse". MSN. 19 September 2023. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
  7. Giorgio Napolitano è morto: se ne va il primo presidente della Repubblica eletto due volte (in Italian)