Italy’s right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is taking a calculated political risk by putting judicial reform to a referendum on 22–23 March, a move that could either strengthen her dominance or dent her reputation for invincibility.
Meloni currently leads one of Italy’s most stable governments in years, both in Rome and on the European stage. A victory would cement her authority and reinforce her image as a leader in firm control. But Italian referendums have a habit of turning into de facto confidence votes on the government of the day. Meloni will not have forgotten that Matteo Renzi resigned in 2016 after losing a constitutional referendum.
Judicial reform is among Italy’s most sensitive political battlegrounds. The right has long clashed with what it sees as a politicised judiciary, a tension dating back to the corruption probes of the 1990s that dismantled the Christian Democrat establishment. The late Silvio Berlusconi, who faced dozens of criminal cases, repeatedly accused magistrates of political bias.
Meloni’s supporters argue the proposed reforms would modernise a justice system widely criticised as slow and unaccountable, aligning it more closely with European standards. The changes are largely technical, reshaping how judges and prosecutors are recruited, governed and disciplined, including separating their career paths and overhauling oversight bodies.
via Politico
