The pure party-list proportional representation had traditionally become the electoral system of Italy, and it was adopted for the regional vote too.

Remaining votes and seats were transferred at regional level, where they were divided using the Hare quota, and automatically distributed to best losers into the local lists.

The most relevant result of these elections was the switch of Piedmont, which returned to the Christian Democracy after ten year of leftist administration.

If the vote weakened both two major parties, the DC could compensate its loss with the reinforcement of its national allies, while the Communists became increasingly isolated, with Craxi's Socialists looking definitely at their right.

Twelve Regional Councils elected a centrist administration, with the PSI rewarded by four presidencies, while the PCI was confined to its traditional strongholds: Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany and Umbria.