Italy will transform its electoral system after lawmakers approved reforms that Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s allies initially pushed to help her reelection odds next year.
Italy’s lower house gave final sign-off to the bill on Thursday, capping a months-long process that revealed fractures in Meloni’s coalition. The reform package passed by a vote of 227-164.
The overhaul means Italy’s parliament seats will now be awarded proportionally, with bonus seats given to any coalition achieving more than 42% of the vote — an attempt to ensure governing stability. The bonus only applies if the same coalition or party crosses the threshold in both houses of parliament.
“Whoever wins will govern. And whoever loses will go into opposition. Enough with majorities cobbled together unbeknown to voters,” said Stefano Benigni, a lawmaker from Meloni’s coalition with Forza Italia. “Voting will matter again.”
Meloni began championing the reforms last year, when it became clear she may lose key first-past-the-post Senate seats in the 2027 general election. But the political landscape has since changed with the rise of Roberto Vannacci, the former army general who helms National Future, making it less clear whether the changes will actually boost Meloni’s chances.
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To reach the new 42% threshold, Meloni will likely need to either win back some of Vannacci’s supporters or strike an alliance with his ultranationalist party — something she has so far opposed. National Future was polling at 7.7% nationally on Oct. 7, according to Youtrend, making it the second-largest party on the right.
Meloni’s coalition has also shown deepening fissures, which were exposed in July when it unexpectedly lost a vote on an amendment to the voting bill. Since then, her coalition’s whips have managed to restore discipline, with the government winning three votes of confidence this week.
Meloni and her camp had been clear that defeat on Thursday would have likely prompted the prime minister to seek the dissolution of Parliament.
The opposition has decried the electoral reforms as a way for Meloni to hold on to power, especially after she lost a national referendum in March on sweeping justice system change.
“Ever since your government lost the referendum on justice reform, the sole concern of Giorgia Meloni has been to ensure she can return to Palazzo Chigi,” said Maria Elena Boschi, an opposition lawmaker with Italia Viva, referencing the seat of executive power in Rome.
Benigni, the Forza Italia lawmaker, rejected the argument.
“The rules we present today will be valid for everyone, even for you,” he said.
The bill now goes to President Sergio Mattarella for sign-off. It could also face challenges before Italy’s Constitutional Court.