Meloni's coalition is not giving up on electoral reform after the vote failed
Italy’s ruling coalition intends to continue pushing for electoral reform despite the failed vote on one of its key provisions. Representatives of the majority made this announcement on Wednesday.
Despite this initial setback during the reform’s consideration, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s team does not plan to abandon the initiative and will continue working toward its implementation.
Italy’s ruling coalition has no intention of abandoning the planned electoral reform following the failure of a parliamentary vote on one of its key elements.
During a secret ballot on Tuesday, the proposal put forward by Giorgia Meloni’s “Brothers of Italy” party—which would allow voters to cast ballots for specific candidates on party lists—failed to pass —partly because about 30 coalition lawmakers did not vote “yes.”
The vote’s outcome marked yet another significant setback for Meloni—on top of the March referendum on judicial reform.
The ruling coalition, which includes “Brothers of Italy,” the “League,” and “Forward, Italy,” proposed a fully proportional system with bonus seats, which would guarantee a majority to any coalition that wins more than 42% of the vote.
The current electoral system provides that about one-third of deputies are elected through a first-past-the-post system in single-member districts, with the remainder elected through a proportional system based on party lists.
The opposition criticizes the reform as an attempt by Meloni to improve her chances of re-election, since the center-left bloc stands to gain from retaining the “first-past-the-post” system. After the reform was initiated, she was accused of attempting to rig the next election.
Luca Ciriani, Minister for Parliamentary Relations, stated that the priority remains to pass the bill in the lower house and then send it to the Senate, where it could be approved in September.
Meloni’s “Brothers of Italy” party remains the most popular political force, but recent polls show that, overall, the ruling coalition trails the center-left alliance led by the Democratic Party and the Five Star Movement. Given current sentiment, the 2027 elections may not produce a clear winner, and no single party will have a secure majority.
This is according to Reuters.
As a reminder, a former intelligence officer was detained in Italy on suspicion of spying for Russia.
Following the arrest of Piergabriele Papadia de Bottini di Sant’Agnese, Italy’s former ambassador to Uzbekistan, Italian visa centers in Russia have introduced stricter rules for submitting applications for Schengen visas.
Italy has rejected Donald Trump’s accusations of allegedly insufficient participation in joint U.S. security missions, particularly in the Strait of Hormuz. Officials in Rome emphasize that, on the contrary, the country has offered assistance, and cooperation with Washington remains functional and mutual.
