By Giuseppe Fonte
ROME, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Italy's lower house of parliament gave final approval on Thursday to a fiercely contested electoral reform championed by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni which provides the framework for a national election due next year.
Meloni says the new rules are intended to increase the prospect of stable government. The centre-left opposition says the goal is to boost her chances of retaining power.
In a secret ballot, lawmakers approved by 227 votes to 164 a bill introducing
a fully proportional electoral system (PR), with a seat bonus guaranteeing a parliamentary majority to any alliance winning more than 42% of the vote.
Under the previous rules, around two-thirds of lawmakers were elected through PR, with the remainder chosen in first-past-the-post constituencies which analysts said may have favoured the opposition.
'WHOEVER WINS MUST BE ABLE TO GOVERN'
"We are introducing rules designed to promote the stability and parliamentary cohesion of any government," Meloni posted on X after the vote. "Whoever wins must be able to govern."
When the reform was conceived, her rightist bloc led in opinion polls and critics said the changes were intended to hand her a handsome majority after the election.
However, the political landscape has changed since the emergence in February of a new far-right party, National Future, which has eroded support for the ruling parties.
Polls now show the coalition trailing the centre-left and some analysts say the electoral reform may backfire on Meloni, whose government last month celebrated almost four years in power, making it Italy's longest-lasting since World War Two.
In a heated debate, centre-left lawmakers accused the government of flouting democracy by forcing through the new rules ahead of an election, against the will of the opposition.
"Go ahead and change the electoral law, we will win in any case under any voting system," said Democratic Party (PD) leader Elly Schlein.
One element in the reform obliges each coalition or party running outside a coalition to name its candidate for prime minister before the election.
This puts the centre-left in a bind because the leaders of its two main parties, the PD and the 5-Star Movement, led by former Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, are at loggerheads over who should become prime minister if the alliance wins.
COALITION TENSIONS
Final approval of the reform required four parliamentary votes and capped months of coalition infighting that cast doubt on Meloni's grip on her alliance ahead of next year's election.
The tensions centred on an element of the reform allowing voters to choose their preferred candidates among party lists, reducing the power of the leaders to control which ones are elected.
A compromise was eventually found by which candidates at the top of the lists are automatically given preference, leaving intact the power of the party chiefs to determine most of the candidates who get into parliament.
"To those who hoped to see the centre-right divided, today we responded with facts: we are united, cohesive, and determined to carry forward the commitments made to citizens," Meloni said.
(Reporting by Giuseppe Fonte, writing by Angelo Amante and Gavin Jones, editing by Alvise Armellini and Keith Weir)
