Italy did once have a power which was largely independent of the mafia, or at least of the social strata supporting it, and which did contribute to a partial undoing of the mafia (Duggan 1985): this was of course the Fascist regime. In contrast, democracy, by its very nature, has to rely for consensus on larger parts of the population. Thus the temptation to come to terms with those who hold a monopoly of people's votes, regulate the dispensation of political trust, and somehow guarantee local 'law and order', has been strong, and in several instances has proved irresistible.

XREF: Connects to broader literature on democracy's accommodation of informal power brokers and the relationship between authoritarian regimes and organized crime.

Diego Gambetta, Trust - Making and Breaking…, loc. 2196