Ragusa, Massari (Rg Prossima) analyzes the outcome of the referendum vote in the city and the rest of the province.

Giorgio Massari, founder of Ragusa Prossima, reads the outcome of the recent referendum as a political and civil turning point of great significance.

“What was the true object of the vote?” “Why did Italians, especially the younger ones, return to the polls with such high turnout compared to the last elections?” “And how is it possible that a constitutional reform with a high degree of technicality has reignited the democratic passion of the country?”, he asks.

According to Massari, the very nature of the referendum vote partly explains the phenomenon. “Political scientists define it as a 'luxury' vote because it is less influenced by affiliations and clientelistic networks, thus more free. A luxury that can be enjoyed every now and then.”

So why did Italians grant themselves the “luxury” of rejecting the reform? “For a sum of reasons, which have mutually reinforced each other and produced an unexpected outcome during the campaign.”

The first factor, he notes, lies in the deep relationship between citizens and the fundamental Charter. “Our Constitution, democratic and anti-fascist, is an organic system of principles, values, institutions, and checks and balances in which Italians identify and which they do not wish to see distorted by unnecessary, obscure, and invasive interventions. Constitutional revisions, he adds, should represent the implementation of the Founders' design and should be approved by two-thirds majorities, especially when they touch on guarantee bodies.”

The second reason concerns the merits of the question. “The referendum had nothing to do with improving justice in terms of organization, personnel, or the speed of trials. The vast majority of Italians understood this and expressed themselves accordingly.”

From here, he continues, comes the politicization of the vote: “When substance is lacking, partisan mobilization inevitably prevails.”

There is also a direct message to the center-right government, now nearing the natural conclusion of its term and largely unresponsive to the needs of the country. A signal, Massari emphasizes, delivered not only by the archipelago of subjects hostile to the executive, “but by voters who chose the center-right in the last elections and have now voted for the 'rejection' in the referendum.” A trend confirmed, he states, by the flow analysis conducted by Opinio Italia.

Massari also highlights the territorial dynamics of the vote. "In the South, turnout was lower than in the Center-North, and in Sicily it was the lowest in Italy; yet it was precisely in Sicily that the highest percentages of NO were recorded." A figure that, in his opinion, reveals "the poor ability of the center-right political class, from the regional president to parliamentarians, mayors, and councilors, to activate an opinion vote and a true political and cultural mobilization."

The local picture confirms the trend. "In Ragusa, the very high percentage of NO reinforces this interpretation and signals the expansion of a civic and associative area that is positioned, for ideal and programmatic reasons, distinct and distant from the center-right parties."

A fabric that, he concludes, sees young people as the main protagonists. "As Ragusa Prossima, we are proud to have contributed, together with many realities of civil society and various political forces, to a result that has enhanced participation and strengthened the identification of many citizens in democracy."