Il referendum italiano flop invia un avvertimento a sinistra
https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/global-elections/italys-referendum-flop-sends-a-warning-to-the-left/89502377
di stinglikebutterbee
Il referendum italiano flop invia un avvertimento a sinistra
https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/global-elections/italys-referendum-flop-sends-a-warning-to-the-left/89502377
di stinglikebutterbee
14 commenti
I did vote. But too many didn’t.
Voting is compulsory in Australia. Sounds a bit authoritarian but it works. You get a small fine for not voting.
A bit of context here. The main opposition party (the Democratic Party) campaigned hard to vote YES to all 5 of the questions. The ruling coalition instead told its base to stay at home. None of the questions reached the minimum turnout threshold. In particular the 5th one, about lowering the number of years before being able to apply for Italian citizenship from 10 to 5, received something like 40% of NOs, many coming from voters of the Democratic Party.
So how is the left taking this huge blow? The left is celebrating this flop as some kind of victory. In conclusion the referendum may have sent a signal, but the left parties are too high on themselves to realize that
EDIT: changed some phrasing
Unfortunately, referenda here in Italy rarely clear the 50% turnout threshold. The very contentious one in 2011 on nuclear energy, public water and some judicial reforms relevant to the strongly perceived corruption of the Berlusconi era had a turnout of just 54.7%.
As such, I don’t think that the current result sends warning messages to anyone… which is sad because of course our political parties, and especially those in the left, really need to have a shakeup.
A warning to the left? When was the last time a referendum was won in Italy? Even who propose them almost do not believe, they are more used as political tools.
This has nothing to do with low voter turnout.
This has to do with some leftwing political forces still being surprised after 10 years, that a majority of citizens, on both sides of the aisle in western europe, DON’T want more, or easier, immigration:
> Still, around 14 million Italians went to the polls over Pentecost to vote on five issuesExternal link, four of which aimed at reversing parts of a 2010 labour market reform, while the fifth sought to reduce the residency requirement for Italian citizenship from 10 to five years.
> The result revealed an inconvenient truth. While between 86% and 88% of those who voted backed the first four questions, only 65% voted in favour of the citizenship referendum.
Scroll down [here](https://www.democracy.community/stories/italians-set-vote-citizenship-and-workers-rights) to see the 5 points in this referendum.
The first 4 questions, the ones that got up to 88% support, were about improving labour-rights.
The 5th was about halving the required time for living in italy before one can be granted citizenship, from 10 to 5 years. Would anyone mind telling me what points 1-4 and point 5 are supposed to have in common? Or why they should be on the same referendum?
Come on, anyone? No? Noone? Well, can’t say I am surprised.
The people want labour rights. They want taxing the rich. They support health care, social politics, transparency. They support LGBT rights, they support DEI, they support food safety and vaccines. They support better city planning, less SUVs and better public transport. They support building a society that works for the people instead of the capital.
But you won’t get the political power to do ANY of that, if you constantly try to push for deeply unpopular politics at the same time. All the right wingers need to do to win then, is say “No.”
From the article (emphasis mine):
> For political scientist Giorgio Malet this is a “message to the left”, a sign that **part of its own electorate** opposes a more liberal citizenship law.
Here’s to hope that they finally get the message, in Italy and elsewhere. Because if they don’t, the right wing forces in Europe will continue to become stronger.
For most complicated issues referendums are dumb anyway. In a representative democracy you choose representatives who, assisted by their civil departments, are usually far better able to reach a grounded decision then the uneducated masses.
The left in italy need to touch grass, stop doing stupid infight, and maybe have a political program that isn’t “they are bad vote us!”
It’s pretty shameful for a Government doing anything to slam and lough at a referendum. Meloni just don’t want to hear people‘s will
What were the questions exactly?
Nah, it’s because Italians do not vote and referendums need a threshold. People just can’t be bothered to care unfortunately.
Referendums are inherently bad fot this reason IMO and if you use them as a mechanism you should enforce voting on the matter
It is insane that you can be born in a country, spend your whole life there, only speak the local language, know no other home or culture, and yet not be considered to be from that country.
The solution is simple: people that don’t vote shall be fined.