Slovenes narrowly reject government reform referendum, marking setback for Prime Minister Janez Jansa

Slovenian voters narrowly defeated a government-backed reform that would have increased the powers of parliamentary inquiry commissions, with 51% rejecting the proposal and 49% supporting it, according to partial results covering 99% of ballots. Prime Minister Janez Jansa, a nationalist who admires Donald Trump, had championed the law to expedite witness summons and remove the possibility of court appeals during investigations.

Opponents described the bill as authoritarian, fearing it would force witnesses to disclose sensitive information and effectively create a “political police.” The referendum saw the highest participation ever recorded for such a vote in Slovenia. In parallel, three advisory referendums on issues such as public broadcasting funding, foreign resident voting rights, and conditional unemployment benefits were all passed. The country will head back to the polls later in the year for local elections and another referendum called by trade unions.