Skeptics Voted Against Meloni’s Amended Plan
In a tight 188 to 187 vote conducted in a secret ballot, MPs in Italy’s Chamber of Deputies rejected an amendment spearheaded by Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party. The blow suggests that a handful of her own MPs flipped the decision, creating a fissure inside her coalition.
'The result was a missed opportunity for Italians,' Meloni wrote in a flurry of anger on social media. She also mocked the opposition’s jubilant celebration, saying they were belting out, almost as if they had won a world‑cup final, for preventing voters from picking their own representatives.
The rejected provision dealt with preference voting, letting voters choose the mate from a list who should win. The reform would have moved Italy towards a fully proportional system, awarding a bonus to the party or coalition that received the largest share of the vote, even if that share fell short of an outright majority. It also would have required coalitions to agree on a single platform and a single prime ministerial candidate, a demand that many parties find unpalatable.
Despite the setback, the government can still push the rest of the reform forward. Meloni has long argued the changes would bring less shaky coalitions and stronger stability. Opponents, however, brand the proposal ‘authoritarian’ and suspect it aims to secure a majority for next year’s general election.
Since taking office in 2022, Meloni’s cabinet has drawn together centre‑right, right‑wing and her own far‑right Brothers of Italy. But internal friction has escalated as each party’s individual popularity has slipped, especially with quieter support for the reform in the Chamber. Internal tension peaked on Tuesday when the junior partners within the coalition showed reservations, culminating in the amendment’s defeat.
'If she is going to win a safer majority next year, Meloni must broaden her appeal to either the centre or towards more extremist groups such as Roberto Vannacci’s fledgling National Future party,' analysts say. Vannacci’s hard‑right decree has already outperformed League’s 5.6 per cent, peaking at about 6 per cent.
Source: BBC News 5 hours ago
