The referendum held this Saturday in Slovakia to decide whether or not to reform the Constitution to allow early elections has registered a low turnout that threatens its viability.
According to the first preliminary data after the end of voting this Saturday night, only a quarter of the citizens entitled to vote have participated.
For the referendum to be valid and binding, it requires the participation of at least 50 percent of the citizens entitled to vote.
In this vote, Slovaks were to decide whether to reform their Constitution to include the right to early elections, as is customary in other European Union countries, as their current law does not allow for the dissolution of Parliament before the end of the four-year term.
The referendum has been proposed by the opposition left wing of the Slovak political spectrum following a petition signed by 400,000 voters.
In this regard, the referendum will only be valid if at least 50 percent of those eligible to vote participate, although this level of participation has never been reached — beyond the referendum on European Union accession 20 years ago.
Bratislava is currently governed by a three-party conservative coalition, which no longer has a parliamentary majority. In the event of new elections, according to all the polls, it runs the risk of total defeat, which is why the ruling parties tried to prevent the holding of the vote until the very end. The next appointment with the polls would not be until 2024.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
