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Italian Senate approves electoral reform reintroducing candidate preferences
The Italian Senate has approved a key amendment to the new electoral law, reintroducing the use of candidate preferences after a nearly 35-year absence. The amendment, proposed by Fratelli d'Italia, allows voters to express up to three preferences with a requirement for gender alternation. However, the reform maintains the system of blocked list leaders, meaning the first candidate on each list remains pre-selected by the party and is not subject to direct voter choice.
The vote followed intense political negotiations within the center-right coalition. While the Democratic Party attempted to introduce an amendment for “pure preferences” that would eliminate blocked leaders, the Senate rejected this proposal with 99 votes against and 68 in favor. The center-right coalition, including Lega and Forza Italia, maintained unity to support the majority's version to ensure legislative stability.
Additional components of the reform include the elimination of the 3% threshold for calculating the majority prize, ensuring all coalition votes contribute to the 42% quorum. To prevent a proliferation of micro-parties, the number of signatures required for new political entities to run has been increased from 1,500 to between 6,000 and 7,000. The reform text is expected to return to the Chamber of Deputies for further processing.
Entities
Alessandro Battilocchio · Forza Italia · Fratelli d'Italia · Futuro Nazionale · Giorgia Meloni · Italian Senate · Lega · Partito Democratico · Roberto Rosso · Roberto Vannacci · Senate of Italy · Senato della Repubblica
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how many sources carry each claim.
- [● 9 SOURCES] The Senate rejected an opposition sub-amendment to introduce pure preferences with 99 votes against and 68 in favor. lecodellitorale.it · www.lanotiziagiornale.it · www.editorialedomani.it · liberoreporter.it · www.iltempo.it · +2 more
- [● 4 SOURCES] The electoral reform text is expected to return to the Chamber of Deputies. www.notizie.it · www.quotidiano.net · www.litaliano.it · www.eventipress.com
- [● 8 SOURCES] The majority's proposed electoral reform includes blocked list leaders and allows voters to express up to three preferences. pagellapolitica.it · www.lacronaca24.it · www.paeseitaliapress.it · laltravoce.com · www.eventipress.com · +3 more
- [● 8 SOURCES] Roberto Vannacci, leader of Futuro Nazionale, urged Fratelli d'Italia to support the opposition's amendment for pure preferences. pagellapolitica.it · www.calabrianews.it · www.bigodino.it · www.repubblica.it · italianotizie.online · +2 more
- [● 4 SOURCES] The majority coalition has agreed to keep the threshold for the majority prize at 42%. www.corrierenazionale.it · www.litaliano.it · www.policymakermag.it · www.lanotiziagiornale.it
- [● 6 SOURCES] Fratelli d'Italia voted alongside Lega and Forza Italia to reject the opposition's preference proposal in the Senate. lecodellitorale.it · www.editorialedomani.it · www.informazionequotidiana.it · liberoreporter.it
- [DISPUTED] The Senate approved the majority's amendment to the electoral law with 97 votes in favor. www.lacronaca24.it · lecodellitorale.it · www.paeseitaliapress.it · quotidianodifoggia.it · laltravoce.com · +3 more
- [○ 1 SOURCE] New political parties must collect between 6,000 and 7,000 signatures to run. parlamentonews.com
- [● 2 SOURCES] Voters can express up to three preferences with gender alternation requirements. www.eventipress.com · www.paeseitaliapress.it
- [○ 1 SOURCE] The reform eliminates the 3% threshold for calculating the majority prize. parlamentonews.com