time when some institutional reforms (notably changes in the electoral laws intended to diminish the power of political parties) were taking place. In the Italian referendums of 1993, voters approved substantial changes, including moving from a proportional to a mixed-member proportional representation system (with the requirement to obtain a minimum of 4% of the national vote to obtain representation) which is largely dominated by a majoritarian electoral system and the abolishment of some ministries (some of which have however been reintroduced with only partly modified names, as the Ministry of Agriculture being renamed Ministry of Agricultural Resources). Major political parties, beset by scandal and loss of voter confidence, underwent far-reaching changes. The main changes in the political landscape were: The left-wing vote appeared to be close to winning a majority. As of late 1993, it appeared that a coalition of left-wing parties may have won 40% of the vote, which would have sufficed to obtain a majority with the new electoral system given the disarray of other factions; The neo-fascist Italian Social Movement changed name and symbol into National Alliance, a party that its president Gianfranco Fini called "post-fascist". Some new members entered into the newly formed party, such as Publio Fiori from the Christian Democracy, but not to a large extent. The Northern League movement vastly increased its support, with some polls indicating up to 16% on a national basis, remarkable when considering that it was only presenting itself in one-third of the country. Secretary Umberto Bossi was gathering protest votes and the support of northern people. In the meantime, Silvio Berlusconi, previously very close to Bettino Craxi and even having appeared in commercials for the Italian Socialist Party, was studying the possibility of making a political party of his own to avoid what seemed to be the unavoidable victory of the political left at the next elections. Only three months before the election, he presented, with a televised announcement, his new party, Forza Italia. Supporters believe he wanted to avert a Communist victory; opponents that he was defending the ancien regime by rebranding it. Whatever his motives, he employed his power in communication (he owned, and still owns, all of the three main private TV stations in Italy) and advanced communication techniques he and his allies knew very well, as his fortune was largely based on advertising. Berlusconi managed to ally himself to both the National Alliance and