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Lega Nord)
The Northern League (Italian: Lega Nord) is an Italian political party that advocates autonomy for a part of Northern Italy called "Padania". It is a personality-driven party led by Umberto Bossi.
It presents a merger of the various regional movements including the Lombard League and the League of Venice. The movement was founded in 1989, and was part of Silvio Berlusconi's government in 1994. In 1996 the movement announced that its aim was the independence of Northern Italy under the name Padania, a name referring to the Po River valley, but which the Northern League gave a geographically broader usage that has been steadily gaining currency. In 2001 they became part of the coalition government again, and hold 30 of 630 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 17 of the 325 Senate seats.
In later years it has deemphasised demands for independence, and wants greater devolution while remaining within the framework of Italy. In the European Parliament its MEPs work within the grouping Independence and Democracy.
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