Rome ( CNN ) -- Angry protesters threw rocks and bottles and police lobbed tear gas canisters Tuesday in Rome 's streets after Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi narrowly survived lawmakers ' confidence votes . A crowd of several hundred protesters smashed motorcycles and police vehicles as they erupted in violence and clashed with authorities following the votes . Small fires were burning in various spots , and loud explosions could be heard from firecrackers or flash-bang devices . Police charging down the Via del Corso -- one of Rome 's main shopping areas -- were pushing back protesters `` slowly but surely , '' said CNN 's Dan Rivers , but he noted the protesters were `` clearly very angry . '' Berlusconi retained his position Tuesday after the nation 's upper and lower houses of parliament voted in his favor . The vote in the upper house , or Senate , was 162-135 with 11 abstentions . The lower house , or Chamber of Deputies , turned in a much narrower margin -- 314-311 , with two abstentions . The vote was the latest in a series on the prime minister 's leadership . The last confidence vote for the three-term prime minister was in September . With so many lawmakers aligned against Berlusconi , however , it may be difficult for him to carry on with his legislative program , said Rivers . `` There is going to have to be a bit of horse-trading , '' he noted . Police earlier had shut down the area of central Rome where the lawmakers met to vote . There was no immediate reaction to the votes or the violence from Berlusconi . In a speech Monday to lawmakers , he made a last-ditch bid to save his political life . `` He who votes against us is betraying the mandate received from the electorate , '' Berlusconi said in his half-hour discourse . `` In these particularly hard times for our country , we all have to find a way to be united and do what is best for the country , '' he said , adding that `` a crisis '' was the last thing Italy needed now . Berlusconi said he needed a mandate to complete judicial and institutional reforms and deal with the country 's economic problems . And he called on supporters of his rival , Gianfranco Fini , not to support the left by voting against him , saying they must not `` subtract '' votes from the right `` in order to add them to the opposition . '' Both Berlusconi 's and Fini 's parties are on the center-right . The prime minister threw Fini out of his party over the summer , and Fini took about 40 lawmakers with him to form the Future and Liberty Party . On Monday , Berlusconi accused Fini , a co-founder of Berlusconi 's People of Freedom Party , of betraying him . And he reached out to the Christian Democratic Union , which is allied with Fini , for support . Italian President Giorgio Napolitano , who has the authority to dissolve parliament , has said he opposes new elections because they would create instability at a time of economic crisis . Last month , Fini accused Berlusconi of a lack of attention to the economic crisis and structural reforms that Italy needs . Forbes magazine ranked Berlusconi last year as the world 's 70th richest man , estimating his net worth at $ 6.5 billion . He amassed much of his wealth as a self-made media mogul , largely through the company Fininvest , and he also owns AC Milan , one of the world 's most famous soccer teams . He 's known political instability before , having served twice as prime minister ( 1994-95 and 2001-06 ) before his election in 2008 . Yet , especially in recent years , the 74-year-old has been dogged by scandal and legal troubles , in addition to his political challenges . Those challenges include a bitter divorce from Veronica Lario , his wife of 19 years , after allegations that a businessman hired escorts for the prime minister and that Berlusconi attended a birthday party for an 18-year-old girl . Videos released this fall showed Berlusconi joking about the Holocaust and calling a female opposition politician `` Pig God . '' The Vatican 's official newspaper blasted the remarks , calling them `` deplorable '' and calling the jokes blasphemous , anti-Semitic and sexist . Shortly afterward , in October , Italian prosecutors expanded their tax fraud investigation into Berlusconi 's Mediaset company , the nation 's largest commercial broadcaster . The prime minister has dismissed the fraud charges as politically motivated . Beyond his personal travails , there are the stark political challenges . Foremost among them , Berlusconi faces a difficult economic picture as he looks ahead to the rest of his term , which expires in 2013 . Italian unemployment is running at 8.5 percent , the highest level since 2003 , according to the Italian statistical office , and public debt is 120 percent of the country 's gross domestic product , the Bank of Italy says . CNN 's Hada Messia contributed to this report .
NEW : Violence erupts along a main commercial street . NEW : Protesters set fires , throw bottles and rocks . NEW : protesters clash with police , who are using tear gas . They survived by a narrow margin after the election .