I realize no one can predict. We are supposed to be in Rome September 18-23. They are having national elections on September 25. Will there be political protests and disruptions that week?
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
15166 posts
Nope. There are elections almost every year in Italy. Sometimes even more than once a year. National, local, referenda, you name it. There were elections even 6 weeks ago on June 12.
Posted by
Cortez, CO, USA
103 posts
I wonder if businesses, public monuments and other tourist attractions close or reduce hours on election day.
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
15166 posts
Nope. Except for those who would normally be closed on Sundays regardless of elections. The only difference you will see on Election Day is the presence of some armed forces soldiers and police in front of every school, since nearly all schools become polling places on that day.
Italian law provides the armed forces to mobilitate to defend this quintessential democratic process. It’s a relic of a constitution written in 1946 after 20 years of Fascism, when, during the last democratic elections of 1924, fascist squads were going to polling places to harass voters to ensure people voted the “right” way.