Italy's citizenship referendum fails due to low turnout
A referendum on easing citizenship rules and strengthening labor laws in Italy has failed due to low voter turnout, in a win for Giorgia Meloni, whose government urged people to boycott it. Over 50% of voters had to participate to validate the two-day referendum but by close of polls on Monday, June 9, just over 30% of those eligible had done so.
The referendum proposal, triggered by a grassroots campaign and backed by the center-left Democratic Party (PD), would have reduced the time it takes to get citizenship. A non-EU adult resident without marriage or blood ties to Italy must currently live in the country for 10 years before they can apply – a process which can then take years more. A referendum win would have cut this to five years, putting Italy in line with Germany and France.
But Prime Minister Meloni, whose far-right Brothers of Italy party has prioritized cutting irregular immigration even as her government has increased the number of migrant work visas, had said she was "absolutely against" the idea. And many members of her right-wing coalition urged people not to vote to prevent the threshold being met.
The ballot included one question on citizenship. The four others were on increasing protections for workers who are dismissed, in precarious situations or involved in workplace accidents. CGIL general secretary Maurizio Landini slammed the low turnout as a sign of a "clear democratic crisis" in Italy.
Under new leadership, the PD – which is polling behind Meloni's far-right Fratelli d'Italia – had sought to woo working-class voters by backing the referendum. Giovanbattista Fazzolari, Meloni's right-hand man, said the opposition "wanted to turn this referendum into a referendum on the Meloni government." "The answer seems very clear: the government emerges even stronger and the left even weaker," he told journalists in Rome.
Even had it passed, the reform would not have affected a migration law many consider unfair: that children born in Italy to foreign parents cannot request nationality until they reach 18.
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LeMonde
6 hours ago
- LeMonde
Italy's citizenship referendum fails due to low turnout
A referendum on easing citizenship rules and strengthening labor laws in Italy has failed due to low voter turnout, in a win for Giorgia Meloni, whose government urged people to boycott it. Over 50% of voters had to participate to validate the two-day referendum but by close of polls on Monday, June 9, just over 30% of those eligible had done so. The referendum proposal, triggered by a grassroots campaign and backed by the center-left Democratic Party (PD), would have reduced the time it takes to get citizenship. A non-EU adult resident without marriage or blood ties to Italy must currently live in the country for 10 years before they can apply – a process which can then take years more. A referendum win would have cut this to five years, putting Italy in line with Germany and France. But Prime Minister Meloni, whose far-right Brothers of Italy party has prioritized cutting irregular immigration even as her government has increased the number of migrant work visas, had said she was "absolutely against" the idea. And many members of her right-wing coalition urged people not to vote to prevent the threshold being met. The ballot included one question on citizenship. The four others were on increasing protections for workers who are dismissed, in precarious situations or involved in workplace accidents. CGIL general secretary Maurizio Landini slammed the low turnout as a sign of a "clear democratic crisis" in Italy. Under new leadership, the PD – which is polling behind Meloni's far-right Fratelli d'Italia – had sought to woo working-class voters by backing the referendum. Giovanbattista Fazzolari, Meloni's right-hand man, said the opposition "wanted to turn this referendum into a referendum on the Meloni government." "The answer seems very clear: the government emerges even stronger and the left even weaker," he told journalists in Rome. Even had it passed, the reform would not have affected a migration law many consider unfair: that children born in Italy to foreign parents cannot request nationality until they reach 18.
Local France
7 hours ago
- Local France
Le Pen and Orban lambast EU at far-right rally in France
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Euronews
7 hours ago
- Euronews
Referendum in Italy to fail as turnout far below threshold, poll shows
A referendum in Italy on citizenship requirements and job protection is likely to have failed, as turnout was far below the required threshold, polling agency YouTrend said on Monday. Turnout needed to be at least 50% plus one vote to make the referendum results binding, but based on data collected from 60,000 polling stations, turnout was around 30%. The referendum, proposed by trade unions and civic organisations, addresses issues that have generated political debate in Italy in recent years, particularly labour market reform, primarily the 2016 Labour Act, as well as migrant reception and integration policies. The first four questions relate to labour issues and concern the increasing protection of workers, small enterprises and their obligations towards employees, short-term contracts, and the responsibility of clients towards subcontracting parties and employees' safety. The fifth question concerns the period of time necessary for non-EU nationals residing in the country to be eligible for Italian citizenship, proposing to reduce it from 10 to five years. The parties of the ruling coalition, led by Premier Giorgia Meloni's Brothers of Italy, opposed the referendum, with some politicians urging citizens not to participate in the vote. According to the advocacy group International Democracy Community, although opposition parties have supported the referendum, it is primarily a citizens' initiative and not a political matter. "The referendum questions were proposed through a bottom-up approach, and did not come from parliament," the International Democracy Community said in a statement. "Members of the Europa+ party launched the initiative on the citizenship question, whilst the Italian General Confederation of Labour (CGIL) has been the initiator of the Labour Act ones, with support from the Democratic Party, the Five Star Movement, and the Green and Left Alliance." According to exit data after polls closed at 3 pm, the "yes" vote for the four labour law questions stood at around 85%, while 60% of voters said yes to the citizenship question. The referendum coincided with local elections in several Italian regions and municipalities.
