Right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will face a political test in a two-day referendum on judicial reform.
Published on 22 March 2026
Italians are voting in a two-day referendum on reforms that Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni says will make the judiciary more independent, but critics argue will do the opposite.
The vote on Sunday and Monday risks turning into a referendum on the right-wing leader ahead of parliamentary elections next year.
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Meloni’s government wants to change the Italian Constitution to separate the roles of judges and prosecutors and reform their oversight body. She says the plan is necessary to guarantee fairness and improve the functioning of Italy’s crumbling justice system.
This will make it “more modern, more qualitative, more autonomous, more accountable and, above all, free from political constraints,” Meloni said in a video last week.
But critics condemn it as a political power grab that fails to address real challenges, including years-long trials and prison overcrowding.
Elie Schlein, leader of the center-left Democratic Party, said the referendum was badly drafted and that it “undermines the independence of the judiciary”.
Opinion polls indicate that there is a close contest between the two camps.
A decisive “no” would be a blow to Meloni, who has led an unusually stable coalition government through October 2022. However, she has rejected suggestions that she might step down if she loses.
Voting closes at 3pm (14:00 GMT) on Monday and preliminary results are expected the same day.
The most divisive part of the reform involves changes to the Superior Council of the Judiciary (CSM), an oversight and disciplinary body whose members are elected by their peers and the Parliament.
The reform would split the CSM into two councils, one for judges and one for prosecutors, and create a 15-member disciplinary court.
The members would be elected by lot, no longer voted by their peers, with three members of the court chosen by the ceremonial President of Italy and three chosen from a list of experienced lawyers approved by the Parliament.
Criminal defense lawyer Franco Moretti, who heads the “No” campaign, said the new court risks becoming an “armed branch of politics”.
“If necessary, it can be used to settle scores with that part of the judiciary that has dared to touch it,” he said in a debate this month.
Analysts said Meloni is likely to get a big boost from a “yes” victory as she grapples with the fallout from the Iran war and a stagnant economy near the end of her mandate.
A victory for the centre-left – still trailing Meloni’s faction in opinion polls – would strengthen its efforts to form a coalition capable of challenging the prime minister.
