Given the possibility of changes to the traditional mail-in voting model, the former congressman Luis Roberto Lorenzato, who represented South America in the Italian Parliament, suggested a new model for the voting process in Brazil.
The country concentrates the second largest Italian-descendant community outside of ItalyBrazil, second only to Argentina, has a territorial size that makes in-person voting difficult. The proposal seeks to guarantee security, accessibility, and democratic inclusion, without excluding citizens with the right to vote.
Regional voting with polling stations in major cities.
Lorenzato argues that each administrative region of the Brazilian states should have a polling station located in the city with the largest infrastructure and concentration of Italian voters. This model would replace the previous criterion, which was based solely on a fixed number of voters per city.
According to him, this proposal would be more flexible and suited to the Brazilian reality, as well as allowing for greater geographic reach without compromising the efficiency of the process.
Partnerships with vice-consulates and municipalities
The polling places, as you suggested, could function as follows:
- in honorary vice-consulates;
- in municipal public buildings;
- or in spaces provided by municipalities that have agreements with Italian consulates.
Lorenzato states that this format would strengthen the consular presence and institutional and cultural ties with the Italian-Brazilian community.
Right to vote by mail maintained.
For voters who live far from the regional headquarters, Lorenzato suggests maintaining the right to vote by mail. The proposal stipulates that citizens more than 100 kilometers from the headquarters can request to vote by mail.
The model would therefore be hybrid:
- In-person events in the regional headquarters cities;
- By mail for those outside the coverage area.
Direct community involvement
Another proposal from the former congressman is to involve the Italian-Brazilian community in the electoral process. He suggests that support teams be composed of citizens with dual citizenship, which would guarantee greater transparency and participation.
"Involving the community itself in the electoral process is fundamental to reinforcing the trust, legitimacy, and civic pride of Italian voters in Brazil," he stated.
Criticisms of the Meloni government
In a video posted on his social media, Lorenzato criticized the Italian government's intention to end postal voting in overseas elections.
"What the Meloni government is proposing is absurd. They want to end postal voting, which harms the right-wing coalition itself, which has a real chance of winning abroad," he said.
"We are the largest diaspora in the world. We have serious, modern institutions, far more so than in Italy itself," he added.
He further stated that participation would be higher with the possibility of structured in-person voting. "The community will be very happy to be able to vote and exercise their citizenship. Participation would be extremely high, unlike voting by mail."
Lorenzato advised citizens to keep their information updated. "It's important to show that we exist and that we are interested in voting," he concluded.
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