The Prime Minister of Italy, Giorgia Meloni, suffered an electoral defeat in a referendum this Monday (23), whose objective was to advance judicial reform in the country. Despite the setback, she dismissed claims of resignation.
“The Italian people decided, and we will respect that decision. We will move forward, as we have always done, with responsibility, determination and respect for the Italian people and for Italy”, said the European leader at X after the release of preliminary results, which show the “no” ahead of the “yes” with around 54%.
“This does not alter our commitment to continue working diligently and with determination for the good of the nation and to honor the mandate entrusted to us,” added Meloni, who had already clarified before the vote that, regardless of the result, he would not resign.
One of the main measures that the Italian government’s judicial reform proposed was the separation of careers between judges and prosecutors, preventing them from changing roles, something that is currently permitted under Italian law.
Furthermore, the project defended a change in the Superior Council of the Judiciary, responsible for supervising the appointments of magistrates. The government envisaged a new format for choosing judges and prosecutors, replacing internal elections with draws among those eligible. It also suggested the creation of a new disciplinary court made up of 15 members to judge disciplinary matters.
Giorgia Meloni’s administration argues that reform of the judicial system has become essential because the current format is slow and prone to corruption. The government argues that the project provided for greater accountability for judges who commit crimes or are targets of disciplinary actions.
In turn, critics of the initiative justify that the reform ignored the true priorities and threats to the independence of the Judiciary. According to opponents, the proposed changes could allow politicians, including those in government, to exert greater influence over the system.
