ABSTRACT
The process of formation of ‘leaguism’ follows the typical path of regionalist movements. At the roots of the phenomenon lie the ideas of Bruno Salvadori, who was the leader of the Union Valdôtaine (UV), the first of the movements forward to fight for ethnolinguistic autonomy in northern Italy. In 1979, the UV tried to gather under its own banner all the autonomist forces and win a seat in the first direct elections to the European Parliament. It thus sought partners from outside the region with special statutes where parties whose focus was to the centreperiphery cleavage already existed: Union Valdôtaine (UV), Unione Slovena, Movimento Friuli, Südtiroler Volkspartei (SVP), Partito Sardo d’Azione, (PSd’A).
