of the members.
If the referendum held last week had passed it would have modified about a third of the Constitution – 47 Articles out of 139. Opponents to this change, including some within the Governing Party, had argued during the lead up to the vote that these changes would have given the Prime Minister too much power. The Italian people agreed.
Just over 59% of those who voted rejected the changes. Only about 40% voted yes and there was only about a 70% turnout for the referendum.
In the aftermath, the youngest Italian Prime Minister ever, who has served for 2 years and 287 days (making him the fourth longest serving PM since 1991) has quit.
So while there was a failure to change the Italian Constitution last weekend, here in Australia most referendums have also failed. Out of the 44 referendums only eight have passed. Constitutions provide stability and consistency and are therefore meant to be hard to change, but no so hard that change is impossible.
Referendums belong to the people and here at CEFA we are dedicated to giving them useful information, to empower a better informed voter. Let us know what you think.