1974 Italian divorce referendum
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The nationwide Italian referendum on the right to divorce was held on the 12 May, 1974. Voters were asked whether they wanted to abolish a government law passed three years earlier allowing divorce for the first time in Italian history. Those voting "yes" wanted to outlaw divorce as it had been before the law came into effect, and those voting "no" wanted to retain the law and their newly gained right to divorce.
The referendum was won by the NO's, 59.3% against 40.7% YES's, with a voter turnout of 87.7% out of 37 million eligible Italian electors.
The legislative right to a divorce thereby remained legal in Italy, and still is to this day.
This vote was the first of its kind in the country, being the first regular legislative referendum held by the Italian Republic 27 years after the Italian constitution (which allowed referendums) was approved.
Initial petitions
Signatures and petitions for the referendum were collected by Christian groups lead by Gabrio Lombardo with very strong support from the Vatican and the Catholic church.
Political party positions
The Christian Democrats and the neo- fascist Italian Social Movement intensely campaigned for a "Yes" vote to abolish the law and make divorce illegal again. Their main themes were the safeguarding of the traditional nuclear family model and the "think of the children" argument.
Most left-wing political forces, the main ones being the Italian Socialist Party and the Italian Communist Party, supported the "No" faction.
Intense campaigning for a "NO" vote also came from Marco Pannella of the Italian Radical Party which had been petitioning for a right to divorce in Italy since the early 1960s.
Confusion in voting methods
The voting method caused significant confusion with many people not understanding that they had to vote "NO" to able to divorce or vote "YES" to outlaw divorce. Some campaigners from the "NO" camp stated without this confusion the "NO" vote might have even been higher than the 59% obtained.
Censorship on television
The 1974 Eurovision Song Contest held in April of that year was not transmitted on the Italian state television channel RAI because of a song sung by Gigliola Cinquetti.
Despite the eurovision contest taking place more than a month before the planned vote and despite Cinquetti going as far as winning second place, italian censors refused the contest and song to be shown or heard. Rai censors felt the song which was titled "Sì" (meaning YES), and which contained lyrics constantly repeating the word "SI" (yes) could be accused of being a subliminal message and a form of propaganda to influence the Italian voting public to vote "YES" in the referendum. The song remained censored on most Italian state TV and radio stations for over a month.
Effects
The referendum was considered a major victory for the civil rights and anti-clericalism movements, and for the Italian radical party.
