Italian Constitutional court strikes down electoral law, paves way for new elections

Roma – Italy’s Constitutional court partially rejected the electoral law, dubbed ‘Italicum’, approved by the country’s former prime minister Matteo Renzi, but presented a reworked version that can be used immediately. In light of this, the 5 Star Movement and the Northern League are now calling for an immediate vote, while the Democratic Party, or better its secretary Matteo Renzi, hopes to approve a new electoral law – one covering both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate – before heading to the polls.

The court ruled that elections should be held in a single round, meaning that Renzi’s electoral law, which applies only to the Chamber of Deputies – Renzi was hoping to eliminate the need for both houses to agree on legislation through the constitutional reform that was overwhelmingly struck down in last month’s referendum – loses the run-off between the two largest parties. Thus, the ‘majority premium’ – which guarantees the biggest party an automatic majority in parliament – now kicks in only in the unlikely even (given the current make-up of the Italian political system) of a party winning at least 40 per cent of the votes in the first and only round.

Another controversial aspect of the law – which gave party bosses the right to present multiple candidates in constituencies nationwide and then arbitrarily choose the lead candidate, effectively giving them control over most of the deputies who were elected to parliament – was partially rewritten by the court as well. Parties can still present blocked lists – which automatically give a vote to the candidate at the top of the list – in up to 10 constituencies, but those elected cannot arbitrarily choose which one to accept (therefore sending the second-elect to parliament), but will have to take office where they obtained the most preferences. In case of a tie, a draw will be called.

Even though the court ruled that the reworked electoral law can be used immediately, the problem remains that there are now different voting systems in the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. The former is governed by the so-called ‘Consultellum’, a pure proportional system with an 8 per cent threshold, which is derived from a previous ruling by the constitutional court that declared illegal the electoral law approved in 2005 (known as the ‘Porcellum’) by the Northern League.

Having two different electoral systems would not ensure governability after the vote, which is why the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella – who is responsible for deciding on an early dissolution of parliament – has already indicated the need to standardise the electoral system for the selection of deputies and senators.

Today’s ruling seems to suggest a possible return to the so-called ‘Mattarellum’, a system that assigns 75 per cent of the seats through a single-round majoritarian system, while the remaining 25 per cent of the seats are assigned proportionally. This would be Renzi’s preferred choice, even though a democratic deputy has already presented a law in parliament which essentially extends the reworked lower house electoral law to the Senate as well.

This second option would pave the wave the way for a coalition in which Renzi would be willing to accept the centrists led by Alfano and the left represented by the former mayor of Milan, Giuliano Pisapia. The latter, however, has thus failed to bring on board the new, recently formed left-wing party Sinistra Italiana (Italian Left), comprised of various former members of Niki Vendola’s now disbanded party, SEL, as well as some former members of the Democratic Party. Moreover, at the moment it’s unclear whether there is enough support from the other parties, beginning with Forza Italia, for the approval of a new electoral law.

An experienced observer as, Pino Pisicchio, chairman of the lower house’s mixed group, is convinced that going to a vote immediately, with two electoral laws essentially rewritten by the courts, would be “yet another renunciation of politics to exercise its role”. He then summarised the situation: “Either we can reach a rapid agreement on a new electoral law, or the polls will decide when we vote”.

From his blog, Matteo Renzi started gearing up for the electoral contest by defending his government’s action and attacking “Europe’s role in this delicate phase” of US-Russia relations, “which remains to be seen”. The secretary of the Democratic Party then aimed his shots at the “ridiculous letters [from Brussels] demanding absurd corrections of the deficit”, at the European Union’s failure to manage the migratory crisis and against “the short-sighted interpretation of the rules by some euro bureaucrats”. The electoral campaign has thus already started. Now all that remains to be see is how and when the country will vote.

(English version edited by Thomas Fazi)