The Italian Associations in South America (''Associazioni Italiane in Sud America'', AISA) was an
Italian political party representing voters living in
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...
, since many Italians have immigrated to South America.
The party won one seat in the
Chamber of Deputies
The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures.
Description
Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...
and one seat in the
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
in the
2006 general election. The party has been represented in the Senate by
Luigi Pallaro
is a fictional character featured in video games and related media released by Nintendo. Created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, Luigi is portrayed as the younger fraternal twin brother and sidekick of Mario, Nintendo's masc ...
and in the Chamber of Deputies by
Ricardo Antonio Merlo
Ricardo Antonio Merlo (born 25 May 1962 in Buenos Aires) is an Italian politician, leader of the Associative Movement Italians Abroad. Born and resident in Argentina, he acquired Italian citizenship through Jus sanguinis.
Biography
Graduated ...
, who left the party in 2008 in order to form the
Associative Movement Italians Abroad
The Associative Movement of Italians Abroad ( it, Movimento Associativo Italiani all'Estero, MAIE) is an Italian political party representing Italians abroad. Based in Argentina and active mainly in South America, the MAIE is a centrist party.
Hi ...
.
Notably, former senator Pallaro was at the centre of a controversy, as he was the only independent elected member of the Senate in which the winning coalition,
The Union, had just two more seats than the rival
House of Freedoms
The House of Freedoms ( it, Casa delle Libertà , CdL) was a major centre-right political and electoral alliance in Italy, led by Silvio Berlusconi.
History
The CdL was the successor of the Pole of Freedoms/Pole of Good Government and the Pole fo ...
, and he did not formally declare a preference for one of the two sides, although he generally supported the centre-left government of
Romano Prodi
Romano Antonio Prodi (; born 9 August 1939) is an Italian politician, economist, academic, senior civil servant, and business executive who served as the tenth president of the European Commission from 1999 to 2004. He served twice as Prim ...
.
Pallaro was not re-elected in the
2008 general election, thus ending his political career. Merlo was re-elected for the rival list.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Italian Associations In South America
Italian expatriate representation parties
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
Italian-Argentine culture