Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni Admits Failure of Justice Reform Attempt

Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has conceded defeat in the planned judicial reform referendum. “The Italians have decided – and we will respect that,” she stated Monday afternoon via the microblogging service X. “We will continue as we have so far, with responsibility, determination, and respect for the Italian people and Italy.”

Gli italiani hanno deciso. E noi rispettiamo questa decisione.
Andremo avanti, come abbiamo sempre fatto, con responsabilità, determinazione e rispetto verso il popolo italiano e verso l’Italia. pic.twitter.com/KCBf19hO8d

— Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) March 23, 2026

Following the initial exit polls by the public broadcaster Rai, 53.1% of participants voted against the planned reform. The referendum, held from Sunday morning, focused on whether the career paths of judges and prosecutors should be strictly separated in the manner of other European countries. Additionally, the committee responsible for their appointment and promotion, the Superior Council of the Judiciary, would also have to be separated by profession.

🗳 #Referendum, proiezioni Opinio per Rai:
Sì ✅ 46,9%
No ❌53,1%#MaratonaYoutrend pic.twitter.com/44IDo2ePBH

— Youtrend (@you_trend) March 23, 2026

The composition of new electoral committees should also have been reformed. Similar to the previous system, two-thirds of the seats would go to sitting judges and prosecutors, while the remaining seats would be held by experts outside the judiciary appointed by the Parliament. Unlike before, these seats would have been fully assigned by lottery. Meloni’s cabinet also wanted to establish a new joint disciplinary committee.

Meloni Warned of “Even More Absurd Decisions”

Repeatedly, the Italian Prime Minister accused the judiciary of politicization, patronage, and “sabotage” in the fight against illegal immigration. Before the referendum, she warned that there might not be a second chance for judicial reform.

We will face even stronger cliques, even more indifferent judges, and even more absurd decisions, with immigrants, rapists, pedophiles, and traffickers being released and putting your safety at risk.

Left-wing critics of the Italian Prime Minister’s policies accused the government of wanting to make the judiciary more dependent on politics. The opposition leader and president of the Social Democrats, Elly Schlein, as well as former Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte from the Five Star Movement, had campaigned for the rejection of the plan. “We resisted this reform from the start, which is part of a broader plan. There is a goal, which is nothing new for the right: to overturn the balance of powers,” Schlein said in January.

Among the prominent critics of the reform is also the Prosecutor of Naples, Nicola Gratteri. He denounced that the government did not take the necessary steps to accelerate procedures.

Instead, it ensured that the fight against crimes against Public Administration, as well as corruption and abuse by executives, became impossible.

The Italian judiciary has faced criticism for many years. According to data from the Ministry of Justice, court proceedings last an average of 467 days, while appeal procedures reach 784 days. In any case, Meloni’s failure to pass this reform does not appear to stem from the Italian public’s lack of recognition of the judiciary’s pathologies, but mainly from the disapproval Italians wanted to express towards the Italian Prime Minister’s hesitations and her attempts to align with the Italian and European center-right, which maintains dominance in Brussels.