2012 Italian local elections
All mayoral elections in Italy in cities with a population higher than 15,000 use the same voting system. Under this system voters express a direct choice for the mayor or an indirect choice voting for the party of the candidate's coalition. If no candidate receives at least 50% of votes, the top two candidates go to a second round after two weeks. This gives a result whereby the winning candidate may be able to claim majority support, although it is not guaranteed. The election of the City Council is based on a direct choice for the candidate with a preference vote: the candidate with the majority of the preferences is elected. The number of the seats for each party is determined proportionally. Majority of each coalition in 142 municipalities ("comuni") with a population higher than 15,000: Party votes in 26 provincial capital municipalities:
Results
Of the 948 municipalities, 28 were provincial capitals and only 176 had a population higher than 15,000 inhabitants (10,000 for Sicily).