Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni snubbed a referendum on easing citizenship laws but has emerged stronger from the vote as the leftist opposition failed to mobilize mass opposition to her right-wing government after nearly three years in power.
A coalition of political parties, unions and civil society groups had promoted the five-question referendum. The proposals included halving the period of residence required to apply for Italian citizenship by naturalization to five years from 10 as well as strengthening job protection rules.
The "Yes" vote prevailed but only around 30% of eligible voters cast their ballots, far fewer than the required 50% plus one of the electorate needed for the referendum to be valid, meaning Meloni can ignore the results.
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