Even if from an administrative point of view the three elections could easily be distinguished, there are worries that the tensions introduced by the reform campaign, closely followed by the European Parliament elections, might make the transition to a new President that much more difficult.

The new President, whoever he or she may be, will probably have to retire early, given that the next parliament will be elected using a new voting system than the one that elected him.

On Saturday March 13th, Oscar Luigi Scalfaro announced he was ready to retire early, provided the Government and opposition could agree on the usefulness of his gesture.

Talks instigated by the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Alberto Violante, which finished on March 16th, were positive. But it remains to be seen when exactly Scalfaro will leave office and the election of his successor will be held.