Voters in Italy have dealt a significant setback to Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni by rejecting her proposed justice reforms in a referendum, results showed on Monday — though she insisted she would remain in office.
With nearly all ballots counted from voting held on Sunday and Monday, the constitutional referendum results placed the “No” vote at about 53.5 per cent and the “Yes” camp at roughly 46.5 per cent, with turnout reaching nearly 59 per cent, higher than anticipated.
“The Italians have decided. And we respect this decision,” Meloni wrote on X.
However, she added that the outcome “does not change our commitment to continue, with seriousness and determination, to work for the good of the nation and to honour the mandate entrusted to us”.
Meloni, leader of the far-right Brothers of Italy party, has presided over a relatively stable government since taking office in October 2022.
Throughout the campaign, she maintained that the vote — focused on the roles and oversight of judges and prosecutors — was not a referendum on her leadership.
Nonetheless, she actively backed the reforms alongside her right-wing coalition partners, while opposition parties campaigned for a “No” vote.
Political analyst Daniele Albertazzi of the University of Surrey described the outcome as a “bad, bad result” for the prime minister.
“It means she has lost the Italian electorate on a major issue in her manifesto and one of the key proposals of the right… for the past 30 years,” he said.
Despite the setback, recent opinion polls still place her party at around 28–29 per cent support, and analysts say there is no immediate threat to her government.
However, the result could strengthen the centre-left ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled for next year.
“Because it means that her image as unbeatable is not there any more,” Albertazzi added.
The referendum sought to separate the roles of judges and prosecutors and reform their oversight system, a move the government argued would improve judicial impartiality.
Critics, however, claimed it was an attempt to exert greater control over independent judges and failed to address longstanding issues within the justice system, including lengthy trials, case backlogs and prison overcrowding.
For many voters, the complexity of the reforms and the tone of the campaign effectively turned the referendum into a broader judgement on Meloni’s leadership.
“Meloni will certainly emerge weakened,” said Lorenzo Castellani of Luiss University.
Elly Schlein, leader of the Democratic Party, celebrated the outcome with supporters in Rome, describing the reforms as “damaging” and poorly drafted.
She said the vote sent a “clear political message” ahead of next year’s elections and called for a united alternative.
Former prime minister Giuseppe Conte, now leader of the Five Star Movement, described the result as “an eviction notice for this government after four years”.
Judicial reform has long been championed by Italy’s right, dating back to former premier Silvio Berlusconi, who frequently accused magistrates of political bias.
The proposed changes would have amended the constitution to prevent judges and prosecutors from switching roles and restructured the Superior Council of the Judiciary, including creating a new disciplinary body.
Referendums have historically carried political risks in Italy. In 2016, then-prime minister Matteo Renzi resigned after voters rejected his constitutional reform proposal.