World Affairs
Italy’s parliament approves election law with 42% threshold
The 227–164 vote replaces Italy’s mixed electoral model with proportional allocation and a conditional majority bonus. Opposition parties say they will challenge the measure in court.
Executive summary
- Final parliamentary vote: The Chamber of Deputies approved bill C.2822-B by 227 votes to 164 in a secret ballot on Oct. 8. The Chamber’s session record calls it definitive approval.[1][2]
- Conditional seat bonus: The bill shifts most seat allocation to proportional rules and provides a 70-seat bonus in the Chamber and 35 in the Senate for the same top-scoring coalition or list if it wins at least 42% of valid votes in each house.[3][2][4]
- Legal challenge promised: Opposition parties say they will challenge the bonus before Italy’s Constitutional Court after the measure takes effect, arguing it gives a large parliamentary reward for a limited vote share.[2][5]
Italy’s Chamber of Deputies gave final parliamentary approval to a new electoral system on Oct. 8, voting 227 to 164 in a secret ballot. The Chamber’s official record identifies the measure as bill C.2822-B and describes the vote as definitive approval. The Senate had amended the bill in September, so Thursday’s vote completed the parliamentary process on that text.[1][6][2]
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government backed the overhaul as a way to make election outcomes and governing coalitions clearer. Opposition lawmakers protested the result and said the system was designed to advantage the governing bloc. Those are competing political claims; the immediate change is to the rules that will govern the next national election, expected in 2027.[2][5][4]
The bill shifts most seat allocation from Italy’s current mixed system to proportional rules, while retaining single-member seats in Valle d’Aosta and Trentino-Alto Adige. It also creates a possible governability bonus. Under the text approved by the Senate and given final approval by the Chamber, the same list or pre-election coalition must finish first in both houses and win at least 42% of valid votes in each. If it qualifies, the bill assigns 70 bonus seats in the Chamber and 35 in the Senate, subject to a cap on the winner’s total seats. If the conditions are not met, the bonus is not awarded.[3][2][7]
The coalition must also name a candidate for prime minister before the election. Meloni’s allies say the provisions should reduce post-election bargaining and help voters identify a governing option. Reuters reported that the bonus could also reward a broad opposition alliance if it can unite around a common candidate and clear the threshold.[2][4]
Center-left parties say they will ask Italy’s Constitutional Court to review the seat bonus after the measure takes effect. They argue that the threshold and added seats could distort representation. The government says the system is intended to produce more stable governments; the court has not ruled on this new measure.[2][5]
The opposition has said it would pursue a Constitutional Court challenge after the measure takes effect. The court has not ruled on this bill, and the parliamentary vote does not resolve the promised legal challenge.[1][2]