Italians vote in referendum; Renzi vows to quit if he loses

However, the referendum was widely thought to act as a litmus test for the rising wave of populism spreading in Europe, and the chance to register discontent with the current government. Here are three things to consider.

“Renzi is going to go and with him the powerful lobbies who were also defeated”, said Renato Brunetta, the parliamentary leader of former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi’s centre-right Forza Italia (Go Italy!) party.

Mr Renzi had staked his future on a “Yes” vote, vowing to quit if voters rejected his plans – which opponents denounced as risky for democracy – to reduce the role of the country’s Senate and take back powers from regional authorities.

Renzi will tender his resignation to the President late on Monday.

Populists the Five Star Movement, led by comedian and Donald Trump admirer Beppe Grillo, claimed the No position, portraying it as something of a protest vote against Mr Renzi’s status quo.

Spearheading the “no” campaign, Grillo voted Sunday evening in Genoa.

Renzi was in jovial mood as he cast his vote in his native Tuscany. “So, the picture is more complicated than an outright confrontation between pro-European and anti-European forces”.

Last month polls gave the “No” vote a projected 53.5% lead to 46.5% for “Yes”.

“Even if you don’t speak Italian, if you watch his body language you can see he’s always very expressive and entertaining – he moves a lot, running back and forth on stage”.

The pound may well gain against the euro – which would be good for holidaymakers heading to the Continent – but the overall economic impact of a return of the eurozone crisis for Britons would nearly certainly be negative.

The plebiscite on Renzi’s flagship overhaul – which would shrink the powers of the Italian senate and regional governments to ease political gridlock and remove red tape – has consumed the country’s politics for most of 2016 and divided a population which is struggling to recover from a bruising triple-dip recession. “They have long promised to hold a referendum on Italy’s membership of the single currency”, said Scarpetta.

Matteo Salvini, leader of Italy’s Lega Nord party, took to social media to celebrate the increasing popularity of antiestablishment movements across the world.

A recent example of the kind of tug-of-war the change is created to address: Italy’s constitutional Court threw out a national law that would have made it easier to fire workers who punch time cards, then effectively don’t go to work.

Italy’s anti-EU movement itself is divided over what it wants. The movement’s five stars stand for “public water, sustainable transport, sustainable development, the right to Internet access and environmentalism”. The two parties have shown no indication so far of working together. While a political crisis might advance the date, many politicians in Italy are in no hurry.

The blow to Renzi also delivered a rebuke to Italy’s industrialists, banks and other establishment institutions, which had staunchly backed the referendum. The anti-reform victory, which could spook investors, comes just as the government had made some inroads in cutting the staggering rate of youth employment and while Italy’s banks have urgent need for recapitalization.