The Observatory on Political Parties “Aldo Di Virgilio” was founded to gather the heritage of studies and research on Italian political parties conducted by Aldo Di Virgilio (1957- 2015) and to valorise the work and research conducted at the Department of Political and Social Sciences by those concerned with comparative politics on the following topics: political representation, electoral systems, parties in the electoral arena, electoral competition, political culture, electoral behaviour, parties in the parliamentary arena, party transformations, party systems, parties and public opinion and parties and populism.
The Observatory organises periodic scientific conferences and seminars on political parties but also aims to promote research projects of its members and favour discussion among those interested in the topics proposed. The Observatory aims to be a reference point and a place (albeit virtual) where scholars of Italian parties and comparative politics can meet and exchange ideas.