Rome - A bid in Italy to give larger political parties more
power failed Monday, with a referendum on the issue set to be
declared invalid due to low voter turnout.
According to Interior Ministry figures, just over 22 per cent of
the 50.5 million eligible voters cast ballots before polls closed on
Monday afternoon - well short of the 50 per cent required for a legal
quorum.
Voters had been asked to approve or reject changes to the
electoral law that could have paved the way for a two-party system,
limiting the traditional role in Italy of smaller parties to play
king-makers in the formation of coalition governments.
A 'yes' vote would also have barred candidates from running in
more than one constituency.
Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi initially backed the
initiative, but did not campaign following pressure from the junior
partner in his conservative coalition, the mostly regional based,
anti-immigration Northern League party.
The referendum result was 'quite predictable,' said parliamentary
lower-house Chamber of Deputies speaker, Gianfranco Fini, adding that
voters were put off by 'questions that were too technical.'
'Secondly, I think that the decision by voters not to participate,
signals a certain fatigue with political debate and with the workings
of democracy. We should all reflect on this,' Fini said.
Since 1996, a series of referendums, including proposals to ease
in vitro fertilization restrictions and to ban hunting, have all
failed due to low voter turnouts.
Also Monday, polls closed in several local run-off elections, with
Italy's main centre-left opposition seeking some respite from recent
setbacks in local polls and in European elections.
In particular, the centre-left is trying to hold onto the province
of Milan, one of its last remaining strongholds in Italy's north
where the centre-right dominates.
The centre-left is also seeking to keep control of the cities of
Bologna, Florence, and southern city of Bari, where much of Italy's
attention is currently focused due to a probe on the alleged payment
of women to attend parties hosted by Berlusconi.
The scandal has hit the 72-year-old media magnate turned
billionaire, less than three weeks before he is set to host a summit
of the Group of Eight most advanced economies.
Berlusconi, dismissing as 'trash' newspaper reports on the probe,
has rejected opposition calls to resign and says he still has the
support of the majority of Italians.
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