LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND COVID-19 MANAGEMENT IN A LOCAL CONTEXT: EMPIRICAL RESEARCH ON THE VIEWS OF CITIZENS, TOWN COUNCILLORS, AND OFFICIALS IN TUSCANY

This study is focused on a small village in Tuscany and explores how citizens evaluate the actions and communication strategies applied by the local government during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study adopted a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods: semi-structured interviews with local administrators, and a survey with a representative sample of the local population. The findings show a limitedly articulated yet meaningful relationship between the central administration and the local one, a positive evaluation by citizens of the local government’s management of the emergency and, generally, good social cohesion, albeit not fully supported by the engagement of civic cultures that were heavily restricted by the socially restrictive measures imposed during the pandemic.