On March 23 in Italy and then on April 12 in Hungary, the two governments, personified by Meloni and Orban, fascists for some, simply neoliberals for others, suffered a resounding electoral defeat, with a high and strangely identical rejection rate of 54%. ---- Our romantic and emotional side could only rejoice in front of the television on the evening of April 12 when the results were announced in Hungary. Good news is not so frequent! But such is our nature that we have another, more rational side that cannot be guided solely by emotion! And then, disaster struck... Orban's successor, the aptly named Magyar, is a die-hard nationalist who defends the same line as his predecessor on immigration and LGBT rights. A former Orban protégé who wanted to become caliph in place of the Caliph. This ambition was conveniently received by a segment of Hungarian business leaders who needed more flexibility in their dealings with Europe while maintaining strong ties with Russia.
In Italy, Meloni wasn't ousted by the ballot box, as Orbán was. She simply received a resounding defeat in the March 23rd referendum on institutional reforms designed to give the government greater control over the judiciary by establishing oversight bodies selected by lot instead of elected by their peers. With a two million vote difference between "yes" and "no," and a lower abstention rate (45%) than in previous referendums[1], the blow was all the more severe because the election campaign focused more on Meloni herself and her government's overall policies than on the judicial reform, the details of which were largely unknown, except that it represented a further step towards state control over the judiciary.
It must be said that this reform involved a reshaping of the Italian Constitution, originally drafted by parties born from the Resistance, an icon that was untouchable. Modifying it could appear as a revenge of the post-fascists, allowing them to take down a judiciary perceived as "red" and "friendly to illegal immigrants." Especially since Meloni, for the occasion, relaunched a campaign based on fear, order, and religion: if the "no" vote prevails, rapists, pedophiles, and illegal immigrants will be set free, she proclaimed repeatedly!
It should also be noted that the vote confirmed the traditional divide between the North and the South of the country: a massive "no" in the South (60 to 65%, and even 75% in Naples); a "yes" in the North, but limited to three regions (Veneto, Lombardy - Milan - and Friuli), since the "no" vote prevailed in Piedmont - Turin, Valle d'Aosta, and Liguria - Genoa. It's worth noting that Turin is associated with the Askatasuna squat resistance, the No TAV movement, and workers' struggles in the automotive industry. Genoa is a major hub for the pro-Gaza movement and port blockades, while Naples and Sicily have distinguished themselves in recent decades through anti-militarist demonstrations against NATO bases and Italy's rearmament. Of course, this isn't a simple cause-and-effect relationship, but it's still striking that the recent surge of protest in certain urban centers hasn't triggered a wave of fear and rejection among voters, despite the media's efforts. The historical divide between Milan, the economic and financial capital, and Turin, the proletarian city with its (former!) workers' councils, remains.
300,000 people at the "No to Kings" demonstration in Rome on March 28, 2026.
According to post-election surveys, the "No" vote won with 62% among those under 35, and the "Yes" vote with over 50% among those over 55. These results are undoubtedly significant, but they should be qualified, as all these studies treat each category as a single group without distinction of social origin.
Yet, nothing compelled Meloni to initiate this judicial reform, much less to hold a referendum on it. So why? Either she was certain that this would be an opportunity to consolidate the government's authority through a resounding "Yes" vote, in which case she will be criticized for being a poor strategist who doesn't know her country well. Either she believed that, even with a modest victory or defeat, it would be an opportunity to reshape her government by removing her most unpopular ministers and reaffirming her authority.
This is what she did as soon as the results were announced, firing two high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Justice and the Minister of Tourism. The leader of the Forza Italia group in the Senate resigned and was replaced by the daughter of former Prime Minister Bettino Craxi under pressure from the Berlusconi clan, which finances Forza Italia but, more importantly, pursues an economic policy entirely focused on Europe. For them, anti-integrationist leanings, such as the "Europe of Nations" approach, must remain purely ideological and detached from political and economic realities. This orientation is ultimately quite similar to that of Magyar in Hungary.
Consequently, more than the results themselves, what most appeals to both our rational and emotional sensibilities is that the social movement, unlike so often the case, has not been extinguished by the electoral process.
The "No to Kings and Queens" demonstration against the war drew nearly 200,000 people to Rome on March 28, far exceeding the expected 30,000. While this success was certainly partly due to the uplifting momentum generated by the defeat of Italy, it's clear that this went far beyond a simple rejection of Meloni, and that judicial reform was merely a minor detail compared to the cries of "For a World Without War" and the yearning for a different Italy.
In Hungary, too, demonstrations with clearly defined social demands continue, particularly among school-aged youth, even if, for the moment, "Europe, Europe, Europe again" is the dominant slogan. Let's hope that the Hungarian illusion will soon be dispelled when the European mirage proves utterly incapable of resolving the ongoing deterioration of the working class's situation.
JPD
Notes
[1]It should be noted, however, that this rate is much higher than that of the post-war years up until the end of the last century, when participation at one point approached 90%. The "Italian passion" for politics has, as in France, transformed into a fascinating mistrust....
http://oclibertaire.lautre.net/spip.php?article4700
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Source: A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
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