| Country: | Kingdom of Italy |
| Type: | legislative |
| Previous Election: | 1880 Italian general election |
| Previous Year: | 1880 |
| Next Election: | 1886 Italian general election |
| Next Year: | 1886 |
| Seats For Election: | All 508 seats in the Chamber of Deputies255 seats needed for a majority |
| Election Date: | 29 October 1882 (first round) 5 November 1882 (second round) |
| Image1: | Agostino Depretis.jpg |
| Leader1: | Agostino Depretis |
| Party1: | Historical Left |
| Seats1: | 289 |
| Seat Change1: | 71 |
| Leader2: | Marco Minghetti |
| Party2: | Historical Right |
| Seats2: | 147 |
| Seat Change2: | 24 |
| Image3: | Agostino Bertani 2.jpg |
| Leader3: | Agostino Bertani |
| Party3: | Historical Far Left |
| Seats3: | 44 |
| Seat Change3: | New |
| Image4: | Giuseppe Zanardelli iii without oval frame.jpg |
| Leader4: | Giuseppe Zanardelli |
| Party4: | Dissident Left |
| Seats4: | 19 |
| Seat Change4: | 100 |
| Prime Minister | |
| Posttitle: | Elected Prime Minister |
| Before Election: | Agostino Depretis |
| After Election: | Agostino Depretis |
| Before Party: | Historical Left |
| After Party: | Historical Left |
General elections were held in Italy on 29 October 1882, with a second round of voting on 5 November.[1] The "ministerial" left-wing bloc emerged as the largest in Parliament, winning 289 of the 508 seats.[2]
Shortly before the elections the voting age was lowered from 25 to 21 and the tax requirement lowered from ₤40 to ₤19.80, whilst men with three years of primary education were exempted from it.[3] This resulted in the number of eligible voters increasing from 621,896 at the 1880 elections to 2,017,829.[4] The electoral system was changed from one based on single-member constituencies to one based on small multi-member constituencies with between two and five seats.[3] Voters had as many votes as there were candidates, except in constituencies with five seats, in which they were limited to four votes.[5] To be elected in the first round a candidate needed an absolute majority of the votes cast and to receive a number of votes equivalent to at least one-eighth of the number registered voters. If a second round was required, the number of candidates going through was double the number of seats available.[5]
The Historical Left was led by the Prime Minister of Italy, Agostino Depretis, a prominent member of the Italian politics for decades. The bloc of the Historical Right was led by Marco Minghetti, a conservative politician and former Prime Minister, from Bologna. A third large parliamentary group was the Historical Far-Left, a far-left organization led by Agostino Bertani, an Italian revolutionary.
| Party | Ideology | Leader | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Historical Left | Liberalism | Agostino Depretis | ||
| Historical Right | Conservatism | Marco Minghetti | ||
| Historical Far Left | Radicalism | Agostino Bertani | ||
| Dissident Left | Progressivism | Giuseppe Zanardelli | ||
The "Ministerial" left-wing bloc emerged as the largest in Parliament, winning 289 of the 508 seats; the Right arrived second with 147 seats.[2] Depretis was confirmed Prime Minister by king Umberto I.