Craxi, Bettino (bətē`nō kră`ksē), 1934–99, Italian political leader. Craxi joined the Italian Socialist party in 1957, eventually becoming deputy secretary (1970) and general secretary (1976). As Italy's first Socialist prime minister (1983–87), he headed a successful coalition government. He cracked down on organized crime, tightened the national budget to cut inflation, and signed a concordat with the Vatican ending Roman Catholicism's status as the state religion. In 1993 he was charged with corruption and resigned as Socialist party leader. Proclaiming his innocence, Craxi fled Italy for Tunisia shortly before his conviction in 1994; he was subsequently convicted on other corruption charges. He died in self-imposed exile.

Craxi, Bettino

orig. Benedetto Craxi

(born Feb. 24, 1934, Milan, Italy—died Jan. 19, 2000, Al-Hammamet, Tun.) Italian politician, Italy's first socialist prime minister (1983–87). Involved initially with the socialist youth movement, he won election to the Chamber of Deputies in 1968 and rose to become the Socialist Party's general secretary in 1976. He united the faction-ridden party, committed it to moderate social and economic policies, and tried to dissociate it from the much larger Italian Communist Party. As prime minister, he pursued anti-inflationary fiscal policies and steered a pro-U.S. course in foreign affairs. In 1993 multiple charges of political corruption forced Craxi, who denied the allegations, to resign as party leader. He moved to Tunisia, and in 1994 he was twice sentenced in absentia to prison terms.