Meloni's electoral law: lawyers are preparing 30 lawsuits to the Constitutional Court, the ruling may come only after the elections

The Italian electoral law, which the opposition calls Melonellum and the government Stabilicum, was approved by the Chamber of Deputies on 8 October and signed by President Sergio Mattarella on 9 October. According to La Repubblica, it will take effect on 26 October, and on that very day lawyers and opposition politicians intend to file 30 lawsuits aimed at bringing it before the Constitutional Court. The problem is time: the Court's president, Giovanni Amoroso, has admitted that in the case of spring elections a ruling could only just be reached in time, and in his view a ruling after the parliament has already been elected is not unprecedented. Il Fatto Quotidiano ↗

What the law changes

According to Il Post, a coalition that wins at least 42% of the vote in both chambers will receive a bonus of 70 deputies and 35 senators, up to a maximum of 220 of 400 seats in the Chamber and 113 of 200 seats in the Senate. If no coalition reaches 42%, pure proportional representation applies. Parties with at least 3% and coalitions with 10% enter parliament. Voters can give up to three preferences, of which at least one must go to a woman and one to a man, but the candidate list is headed by a fixed leader who is elected first. A Youtrend estimate says that fewer than half of deputies will be elected through preference votes, and simulations suggest the share of women in parliament could fall from 33% to 15–20%. Coalitions must announce a candidate for prime minister, but his or her name does not appear on the ballot. Il Post ↗

After the law's approval, Meloni said voters will be able to choose a party, a coalition, a programme, a candidate for prime minister, and their own deputy. ANSA ↗ The Chamber passed the law with 227 votes. ANSA ↗

The law's approval and Meloni's reaction, as covered by TG La7 on October 8 (in Italian, 2 min).

Six objections

The lawsuits were prepared by the Rete per un voto libero e uguale network, led by Roberto Zaccaria. According to Il Fatto Quotidiano, the text was drafted by 99 lawyers, and the network so far has about 500 signatories, including Prodi and Pier Luigi Bersani. Il Fatto Quotidiano ↗ The content was summarized by Enrico Grosso, who called the law "fortemente incostituzionale," meaning strongly unconstitutional. La Repubblica ↗

The objections can be summarized as follows, according to ANSA and Il Fatto Quotidiano:

• The majority bonus is, according to critics, too large and grants seats disproportionately.
• The national bonus in the Senate, which under the constitution is elected by region.
• Opaque allocation of seats to specific candidates, so voters cannot know how their vote affects who gets elected.
• Gender alternation at the top of candidate lists.
• The name of the prime ministerial candidate, while the president retains the role of appointing the prime minister.
• The number of signatures that parties without parliamentary representation must collect.

ANSA ↗ According to Open, constitutional lawyer Azzariti argues that the clause preserving presidential powers does not resolve the problem with the prime minister's name. Open also notes that the Court, in 2017, in the case of the Italicum law, upheld a majority bonus at 40%. Open ↗ Former Constitutional Court president Silvestri called the law "opportunistic" and said it indirectly introduces a premiership system. La Repubblica ↗

The path to the Constitutional Court

The Constitutional Court cannot be approached directly. According to Amoroso, a case must first go before an ordinary judge, who raises the question of constitutionality; the order is then published in the Gazzetta Ufficiale, and only after that does the proceeding begin, which takes at least a month. Il Fatto Quotidiano ↗ Lawyer Pietro Adami expects the first hearing no earlier than mid-January 2027 and a ruling in spring, before summer. Il Fatto Quotidiano ↗

Time is working against the plaintiffs

Amoroso says that if elections are held at the natural end of term, the ruling will definitely come in time; in the case of spring elections it would be "on the edge," and the Court can halve its own deadlines, which is the only tool it has. Il Fatto Quotidiano ↗ Salvini, for his part, maintains that elections will be held at the end of the legislature, in autumn 2027. ANSA ↗ According to Il Fatto Quotidiano, however, Meloni prefers early elections, even though ministers and deputies publicly deny this. The plaintiffs themselves admit that if elections are held earlier, the Court may not manage to rule in time, and in corridors there is talk of the end of May 2027. Il Fatto Quotidiano ↗

A DW News analysis from October 10 asks whether Meloni is changing the rules to stay in power (in English, 12 min). The headline is a question, not a finding.

Limits of this view

We rely on the Italian press and on statements by the plaintiffs, who are predominantly figures from the center-left. The objections are their claims, not a court ruling. The effective date of 26 October is taken from La Repubblica; some other sources give 24 October, and the decisive factor is publication in the Gazzetta Ufficiale, which we did not have access to. Sources differ on which courts the lawsuits will be filed with (courts of appeal, and according to one text also civil tribunals), so we do not state this precisely. We did not find, in the available texts, the governing parties' view on the law's constitutionality.

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*Illustrative photo: Palazzo della Consulta in Rome, seat of the Constitutional Court (Julian Lupyan, Wikimedia Commons, CC0).*