The thesis aims at understanding crisis management in multilevel governance systems, by analysing the relations between central and subnational governments during the Covid-19 crisis. This idea of “intergovernmental relations” (IGR), defined as the relationships between the central government and the regional and local institutions, particularly at the executive branch, highlights the interdependence and interaction that affects both public services delivery and the overall legitimacy of the political system. The research concluded that IGR influenced each country’s ability to mobilize resources and coordinate efforts. In Chile, a highly centralized response was implemented, with limited local autonomy in decisionmaking, highlighting the challenges of decentralization in crisis governance. In Italy, the existing tensions between central and regional governments were reflected by early disarray in responses. Hence, the central government eventually imposed uniform measures across the country, curbing regional autonomy temporarily. Finally, in the Netherlands, even though the governance structure provided more flexibility, the centralized recurse to the Safety Regions led to concerns about bypassing democratic institutions.
Also, the three countries confirmed that the enhanced role of executive leadership at the subnational level has not been properly balanced out by representative and deliberative institutions, a problem exacerbated by severe emergency legislation like in Chile.
Finally, the diverse legal and public administration traditions influenced the way IGR worked in practice, confirming the discrepancy between the actual practices of governance and the constitutional design of political life, and the need to continue with empirical and interdisciplinary research about these topics.
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