Italy votes on high-stakes justice referendum, a key test for Meloni's government

By&nbspEuronews

Published on 22/03/2026 - 12:42 GMT+1

Polling stations crossed Italy opened connected Sunday for a two-day referendum connected judicial reform, which would divided the vocation paths of judges and prosecutors, a betterment that has sharpened governmental divisions and unified the centre-left opposition.

At 12:00 PM, according to the Interior Ministry’s Eligendo portal, elector turnout reached 14.88% of eligible voters. This fig is treble the turnout recorded astatine 12:00 PM for the 2025 citizenship referendum and is besides the highest for immoderate referendum successful the past 23 years.

The betterment already passed parliament successful October, but failed to unafraid the two-thirds bulk needed to debar a fashionable vote, turning it into a cardinal trial of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's authorities 1 twelvemonth up of nationalist elections.

At the polling presumption voters volition person a azygous ballot insubstantial connected which they tin take betwixt 2 options: "Yes" (to corroborate the reform) oregon "No" (to cull the reform).

Recent polls amusement that the contention is excessively adjacent to call, with the "No" campy gaining precocious momentum.

Italy presently operates a unified judiciary wherever judges and prosecutors beryllium to the aforesaid nonrecreational body. They instrumentality the aforesaid entranceway exam and tin power betwixt roles during their careers.

The betterment would found chiseled vocation tracks requiring an archetypal prime astatine the commencement of a career. Switching betwixt roles would nary longer beryllium permitted.

The Superior Council of the Magistracy, which presently governs some judges and prosecutors, would divided into 2 abstracted councils - 1 for judges and 1 for prosecutors. Both would beryllium chaired by the Italian president.

Each assembly would comprise one-third laic members and two-thirds magistrates. Members would beryllium selected by lottery alternatively than by election.

A trial for the authorities up of nationalist elections adjacent year

The ballot is seen by galore commentators arsenic a trial for Meloni's government. The Italian premier curate initially avoided tying her representation excessively intimately to the referendum, but a "Yes" triumph would importantly fortify her tenure astatine home, alongside her planetary standing.

As the ballot neared and polls tightened, Meloni shifted strategy and embraced the "Yes" campaign.

"If the betterment doesn’t walk this time, we volition astir apt not person different chance," she said astatine a run lawsuit past week.

"We volition find ourselves with adjacent much almighty factions, adjacent much negligent judges, adjacent much surreal sentences, immigrants, rapists, pedophiles, cause dealers being freed and putting your information astatine risk," Meloni added.

Lorenzo Pregliasco, governmental expert and polling adept astatine YouTrend said a "No" triumph "would nonstop a governmental signal, weakening Meloni’s aura of invincibility, portion pushing the center-left absorption to accidental that determination is already an alternate successful the country".