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Electoral law, final act. Today, Thursday, October 8th, the Chamber of Deputies will give its final green light to the "Stabilicum." The session will begin at 10:30 a.m., with voting declarations and the final vote scheduled for no earlier than 12:30 p.m., live on television. Yesterday, the Chamber approved the third and final vote of confidence, the government's vote on Article 3: 228 votes in favor, 144 against, and three abstentions.
There was no major shakeup within the majority. Article 8 of the law, regarding voting rights for non-resident residents and caregivers, was approved immediately afterward, with 214 votes in favor and no votes against. The opposition abstained (126 votes) on this part of the bill: "A step forward has been made, even if a small step doesn't, overall, make a good law," said Simona Bonafè (Democratic Party), expressing her reservations about the measure.
All the motions of the day, about forty, presented by the opposition, were also rejected.
The government had expressed some positive opinions, subject to rewording, including a text by Riccardo Magi on digital signature collection, but ultimately the proposals did not pass the floor. Vannaccia's National Future party, on the other hand, had a negative opinion from the outset on the agenda items on preferences and gender equality.
All attention now turns to today's secret ballot. Serena? "I always am," Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said yesterday on the sidelines of the Med9 conference in Split. Across the Atlantic, both in the majority and opposition circles, the discussion has been on nothing else all day, from the secret ballot to the fate of the legislature, to a possible early vote, with all sorts of predictions being made about the outcome of the 'Melonellum' session.
"There will be no problems with the final vote," assured Fratelli d'Italia senator Alberto Balboni. The majority, as announced days ago, has summoned all parliamentarians, including ministers. A sell-out is expected in Montecitorio. During the previous secret ballot, the one on preliminary issues, the center-right parliamentarians' votes were monitored by chamber officials, group leaders, and even parliamentary group employees, strategically positioned in the galleries. A pattern that could repeat itself today.
Riccardo Magi attempted to shake things up, proposing a vote using a catafalque in the chamber, a ballot box, and black and white balls to select deputies, as is done in the election of the President of the Republic. "This system does not guarantee security," said the secretary of +Europa, formally requesting in the chamber that the voting system for the electoral law be changed. The other opposition parties, the Democratic Party, the AVS, and the Five Star Movement, joined Magi in calling, among other things, for people to avoid changing seats and standing in the pews, and also calling for a crackdown on photos and videos from the galleries. However, the president-in-office, Giorgio Mulè, responded to the opposition's requests, clarifying that the electronic voting system will remain in effect: "The presidency ensures the secrecy of the vote," he emphasized.
The opposition, which had continued to criticize the bill's text and approval process until the agenda was discussed, promised a fight ahead of the final vote: in several meetings held in Montecitorio, joint protest initiatives were developed for today, both inside and outside the building. According to the agenda, the "Melonellum" will be law by 1:30 PM today, but the debate on the electoral law will continue: on Monday, the opposition parties have already called a press conference in the Chamber with their various committees to announce their appeals to the Constitutional Court against the "Stabilicum."
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