Ciriaco De Mita facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ciriaco De Mita
Prime Minister of Italy
In office 13 April 1988 – 23 July 1989
President	Francesco Cossiga
Deputy	Gianni De Michelis
Preceded by	Giovanni Goria
Succeeded by	Giulio Andreotti
Minister for Interventions in Southern Italy
In office 30 July 1976 – 21 March 1979
Prime Minister	Giulio Andreotti
Preceded by	Giulio Andreotti (by delegation of functions)
Succeeded by	Michele Di Giesi
Minister of Foreign Trade
In office 23 November 1974 – 30 July 1976
Prime Minister	Aldo Moro
Preceded by	Gianmatteo Matteotti
Succeeded by	Rinaldo Ossola
Minister of Industry, Commerce and Crafts
In office 8 July 1973 – 23 November 1974
Prime Minister	Mariano Rumor
Preceded by	Mauro Ferri
Succeeded by	Carlo Donat-Cattin
Secretary of the Christian Democracy
In office 5 May 1982 – 22 February 1989
Preceded by	Flaminio Piccoli
Succeeded by	Arnaldo Forlani
Member of the Chamber of Deputies
In office 9 May 1996 – 28 April 2008
Constituency	Campania
In office 16 May 1963 – 14 April 1994
Constituency	Benevento (1963–1987; 1992–1994) Liguria (1987–1992)
Member of the European Parliament
In office 14 July 2009 – 1 July 2014
In office 19 July 1999 – 19 July 2004
In office 24 July 1984 – 13 April 1988
Constituency	Southern Italy
Mayor of Nusco
In office 26 May 2014 – 26 May 2022
Preceded by	Giuseppe De Mita
Succeeded by	Walter Vigilante
Personal details
Born	Luigi Ciriaco De Mita (1928-02-02)2 February 1928 Nusco, Campania, Italy
Died	26 May 2022(2022-05-26) (aged 94) Avellino, Campania, Italy
Political party	DC (1956–1994) PPI (1994–2002) DL (2002–2007) PD (2007–2008) UDC (2008–2017) IP (2017–2022)
Spouse	Anna Maria Scarinzi ​ (m. 1958)​
Children	4
Relatives	Giuseppe De Mita (nephew)
Alma mater	Catholic University of Milan

Luigi Ciriaco De Mita (born February 2, 1928 – died May 26, 2022) was an important Italian politician. He served as the Prime Minister of Italy from April 1988 to July 1989. The Prime Minister is the head of the government in Italy.

De Mita was a member of the Christian Democracy (DC) party. He was the party's secretary and leader from 1982 to 1989. This made him one of the most powerful politicians in Italy. He was also a key member of the party's left-leaning group. During his long career, he held several government jobs. He was the Minister of Industry, Commerce, and Crafts from 1973 to 1974. He also served as Minister of Foreign Trade from 1974 to 1976. From 1976 to 1979, he was the Minister for Interventions in Southern Italy.

De Mita was a member of the Chamber of Deputies (like a parliament) for over 40 years. He served from 1963 to 2008. He was also a Member of the European Parliament. Later in his life, De Mita became the mayor of his hometown, Nusco. He served as mayor from 2014 until his death in 2022.

Early Life and Education

Ciriaco De Mita was born in Nusco, a town in the Avellino area, in 1928. His father worked as a tailor and a postman. His mother was a housewife. Ciriaco was a very good student. He went to a classical high school in nearby Sant'Angelo dei Lombardi.

He earned a scholarship to attend the Augustinianum College. Then, he studied at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart in Milan. He graduated with a law degree. After university, he worked as a consultant for the legal office of Eni, a large energy company.

Political Journey

As a young man, Ciriaco De Mita joined the Christian Democracy (DC) party. This was the start of his political career. In 1953, De Mita helped create "La Base," a group within the party that had more left-wing ideas. He quickly moved up in the party. In 1956, he became a member of the party's national council during a big meeting in Trento.

In the 1963 national election, he was elected to the Chamber of Deputies. He represented the area of Benevento–Avellino–Salerno. He remained a deputy without interruption until the 1994 elections. In 1968, De Mita became an undersecretary of state for the Ministry of Interior. This was his first government role.

De Mita with Arnaldo Forlani and Benigno Zaccagnini in 1970

De Mita was appointed deputy secretary of the Christian Democracy party in 1969. He worked under the leader Arnaldo Forlani until February 1973. During the 1970s, De Mita held several important jobs in the government.

• He was the Minister of Industry, Trade, and Crafts from July 1973 to November 1974. He served in the government of Mariano Rumor.
• He was the Minister of Foreign Trade from November 1974 to July 1976. He served in the government of Aldo Moro.
• He was the Minister for Special Projects in Southern Italy from July 1976 to March 1979. He served in the government of Giulio Andreotti.

Leading the Christian Democracy Party

In 1982, De Mita was chosen as the secretary of the Christian Democracy party. His main goal was to make the party more modern and active. However, the party lost many votes in the 1983 election. In 1986, De Mita was re-elected as secretary. He had the support of 60% of the party members.

His time as leader is remembered for his rivalry with Bettino Craxi. Craxi was the leader of the Socialist party and served as Prime Minister for four years in the 1980s. Craxi often said his reforms were better than the Christian Democrats' slow pace. In 1987, Craxi and De Mita disagreed over a deal called the "relay pact." This deal said that the Socialist Party (PSI) would let the Christian Democracy party lead the government in the last year of the term. Craxi refused to do this, which led to an early election in 1987.

In 1984, De Mita encouraged Sergio Mattarella, who later became president of Italy, and Leoluca Orlando to get more involved in politics. Their job was to help clean up the Christian Democracy party in Sicily from the influence of organized crime. De Mita made Mattarella a special leader for Palermo.

De Mita remained the secretary of the party until February 1989. After that, he became the president of the party. He held this position until 1992.

Serving as Prime Minister

De Mita (second from left) at the 14th G7 summit in 1988

After the 1987 elections, De Mita waited a year to become Prime Minister. He was appointed on April 13, 1988. His government was a coalition of five parties, known as the Pentapartito. Just three days later, on April 16, 1988, a terrorist group called the Red Brigades killed Senator Roberto Ruffilli. Ruffilli was an advisor to De Mita.

De Mita's government received approval from the Chamber of Deputies on April 21. His main goal was to reform Italy's political system. This included changes to the Italian Parliament, the Prime Minister's office, local governments, and the rules of the Chamber of Deputies.

In June 1988, his government agreed to move 72 U.S. Air Force F-16 fighter jets to Italy. This happened after Spain asked for them to be removed from its territory.

In terms of social policy, De Mita's government passed a law in May 1988. This law created a new benefit for workers called "benefit for the family nucleus." The amount of money depended on how many family members there were and the family's income from the year before.

De Mita resigned on May 19, 1989, because of ongoing disagreements with Craxi. He tried to form a new government, but he was not successful. His government finally ended in July 1989. Giulio Andreotti then became the new Prime Minister on July 23.

Later Political Roles

De Mita in 2010

In September 1992, De Mita was chosen to lead a special group. This group was called the Bilateral Commission for Constitutional Reform. Its job was to suggest changes to Italy's constitution. He left this role in March 1993.

De Mita did not run for re-election as a deputy in the 1994 elections. However, he ran again in 1996 and was elected. He was also re-elected in 2001 and 2006. During this time, he joined the Italian People's Party and later the Democracy is Freedom – The Daisy party until 2008.

De Mita also served as a Member of the European Parliament. He was a member from 1999 to 2004, and again from 2009 to 2014.

On May 25, 2014, De Mita was elected as the mayor of Nusco, his hometown. He was re-elected in 2019 and served as mayor until his death in 2022.

Family Life and Passing

In 1958, Ciriaco De Mita married Anna Maria Scarinzi. They had four children: one son and three daughters. Their children are Antonia (born 1967), Giuseppe (born 1969), Floriana (born 1973), and Simona (born 1974). His nephew, Giuseppe De Mita, also became a member of the Chamber of Deputies from 2013 to 2018. Ciriaco helped his nephew start his political career.

Ciriaco De Mita passed away on May 26, 2022, at the age of 94. He was recovering from surgery for a broken leg, which he got after falling at home. His funeral was held the next day in Nusco.

Electoral History

Election	House	Constituency	Party		Votes	Result
1958	Chamber of Deputies	Benevento–Avellino–Salerno		DC	39,431	N Not elected
1963	Chamber of Deputies	Benevento–Avellino–Salerno		DC	67,450	Y Elected
1968	Chamber of Deputies	Benevento–Avellino–Salerno		DC	65,231	Y Elected
1972	Chamber of Deputies	Benevento–Avellino–Salerno		DC	127,876	Y Elected
1976	Chamber of Deputies	Benevento–Avellino–Salerno		DC	112,792	Y Elected
1979	Chamber of Deputies	Benevento–Avellino–Salerno		DC	169,431	Y Elected
1983	Chamber of Deputies	Benevento–Avellino–Salerno		DC	203,252	Y Elected
1984	European Parliament	Southern Italy		DC	1,055,233	Y Elected
1987	Chamber of Deputies	Genova–Imperia–La Spezia–Savona		DC	84,726	Y Elected
1992	Chamber of Deputies	Benevento–Avellino–Salerno		DC	106,819	Y Elected
1996	Chamber of Deputies	Mirabella Eclano		PPI	33,326	Y Elected
1999	European Parliament	Southern Italy		PPI	105,288	Y Elected
2001	Chamber of Deputies	Mirabella Eclano		DL	37,504	Y Elected
2006	Chamber of Deputies	Campania 2		DL	–	Y Elected
2008	Senate of the Republic	Campania		UDC	–	N Not elected
2009	European Parliament	Southern Italy		UDC	56,967	Y Elected

Source: Ministry of the Interior

See also

In Spanish: Ciriaco De Mita para niños