On Sunday, June 8 and Monday, June 9, Italians will be asked to vote on five repeal referendum questions that mainly concern labor and citizenship. But while the merits of the questions are being debated in Italy, for the Italian community abroad-particularly the large Italian community rooted in the United States-the main issue is another: how does one vote from abroad?
The participation of Italians living abroad in elections is governed by precise rules and deadlines that should not be underestimated, especially when voting by mail.
Those who are duly registered with AIRE (Registry of Italians Resident Abroad) will automatically receive the election envelope at home. No need to make special requests, as long as the address communicated to the consulate is up to date. Voting will be done by mail, following the instructions in the envelope and respecting the time frame indicated. It is essential to check your AIRE registration and make sure your information is correct, as any errors may affect your ability to vote.
The ballot envelope contains 5 ballots (one for each referendum question) and two envelopes (one pre-stamped, to be returned). In case you have not received the ballot envelope by May 25, you should contact the relevant consular office to obtain a duplicate. Ballots should be filled out and sent to the consulate as soon as possible by carefully following the directions on the information sheet in the election packet and using only the material provided with it.
Only voted ballots delivered to the relevant consular office no later than 4 p.m. local time on Thursday, June 5, will be transmitted to Italy for the ballot.
There are also those who, while living abroad, prefer to return to Italy to vote. In that case, you must notify your consulate in writing by April 10. This is an individual choice, often related to the desire to participate in attendance or the opportunity to return to one’s municipality of origin. The law allows this, but it is important to meet the deadlines, because beyond that date, this option will no longer be valid.
On the other hand, for those who are temporarily abroad – for work, study or other reasons – but are resident in Italy, there is the possibility of still voting by mail. In this case, you must have been abroad for at least three months and apply to your municipality of residence by May 7, indicating a temporary domicile and attaching the necessary documentation. Again, the ballot will arrive by mail and must be returned on time.
As for the content of the referendum, the five questions touch on issues central to workers’ lives and Italian society. They range from the abolition of the contract with increasing protections (Jobs Act) to the restoration of reinstatement in case of wrongful dismissal, to the possibility for judges to freely establish compensation for dismissed workers in small businesses. The other questions concern fixed-term contracts, the responsibility of the principal in contracts for safety at work, and, finally, the reduction from ten to five years of the residence period required to apply for Italian citizenship for resident foreigners.
The article Referendum June 8-9: how to vote from abroad comes from TheNewyorker.
