Italy: Scores of immigrants to vote in April elections

[Marulus]

Italy: Scores of immigrants to vote in April elections





Rome, 13 Feb.(AKI) - The head of the New Italian Immigrants Party, Mustapha Mansouri, has predicted the immigrant vote will be crucial in the upcoming national elections.

The party, composed mainly of immigrants living in Italy, says it now has more than 100,000 members.

"During the (parliamentary) elections on April 13, over 200,000 new Italians will vote, while in the administrative elections, other 400,000 foreign residents could vote," said Moroccan-born Mansouri.

According to the party's calculations, about 200,000 immigrants have acquired Italian citizenship in the past five years.

But he also stressed the electoral clout of foreigners residing in Italy.

"A big influence can be exerted by 400,000 Romanians and Poles resident in our country, who will be able to vote in administrative elections," said Mansouri.

Italian president Giorgio Napolitano dissolved the parliament on 6 February when prime minister Romano Prodi failed to sustain a workable majority in the Senate after 20 months in office.

Strenuous attempts to form an interim government failed and Napolitano set an election date for April.

[source]

[Kernunnos]

Since the Prodi government crashed the law giving them vote was not approved.

[Kernunnos]

Originally Posted by Breha

Since the Prodi government crashed the law giving them vote was not approved.

That was the real problem ... and scores of Poles voting are not definitely a problem, eastern europeans will never vote for the left.

BTW in my party we already ahev some (non gipsy) people of romanian origin, I know two of them who would vote for the Lega Nord ...

Problems would obviously come from arabs and african, all leftist votes.

I

[Marulus]

Is there any point in voting? Is there any point in right or in the left? I am not referring to Italy specifically, but in general.

[Sigurd]

Originally Posted by Marulus

Is there any point in voting? Is there any point in right or in the left? I am not referring to Italy specifically, but in general.

Yes there is a point in voting. If you abstain from voting, you do so in the favour of the "system parties" as it were, because your vote is not counted in the percentages - the percentages are not absolute, and a low turnout just means that even less people approved the election of a certain government than is the case in most democratic climates these days anyway. So if you care at all about how your country turns out to be you are better to give your vote to some smaller party of which you may share some views but not others,(and that are not part of any of the major alliances that you have in Italy, if we're going to be case-specific to the topic) because every vote not cast is essentially a vote for those in power. Vote anything pointless if you will, but don't make it easier for those who don't care a damn about your country than they already have it by abstaining from voting.

[AzzurroItalia]

I agree, it is essential to go and vote.



The Communists will always go and vote. We cannot give them an advantage!

[Marulus]

A very common slogan, I heard it thousand times, from different political affiliations: "We must vote because they vote." Very often both parties in question claim the same about their adversary.