Slovenia votes in four referendums on parliamentary inquiry law and three advisory issues

Polling stations across Slovenia opened this morning for four referendums: one binding legislative vote on amendments to the law on parliamentary inquiries and three advisory questions on the public broadcaster fee, social cash assistance and local voting rights for non‑citizens. Polls remain open until 19:00, and first results are expected after 20:30.

The ballot for the legislative referendum asks voters the following question: "Do you support the entry into force of the Law amending and supplementing the Law on Parliamentary Inquiry, adopted by the National Assembly at the session held on May 26, 2026?"

Concerns from civil society and legal academics

Civil society organisations, backed by opposition parties, gathered the 40,000 signatures required to trigger the referendum. They argue the amendments remove legal safeguards, give politicians excessive powers to intrude on individuals' privacy and create the conditions for a political police.

A group of legal experts from the law faculties in Ljubljana and Maribor warned before the vote that the changes would lower standards for conducting parliamentary inquiries. They also said inquiries can lead to disclosure of personal data of other natural and legal persons, while the proposed amendments do not provide additional legal remedies to protect those affected. The experts note that even the current law provides only minimal safeguards, and those would be removed by the amendments.

The law will be rejected if a majority of valid votes are cast against it, provided that at least one fifth of all eligible voters cast a vote against the law.

Voters may also cast "yes" or "no" votes on three advisory referendums: whether to abolish the mandatory broadcast fee for Radiotelevizija Slovenija; whether the right to cash social assistance should be conditioned on performing community service; and whether the right to vote in local elections should be limited to Slovenian citizens and citizens of European Union member states, excluding third‑country nationals. The State Election Commission said counting will start with the legislative referendum, followed by the advisory votes on social assistance and local voting, and the RTV fee referendum will be counted last.

Early voting was available from Tuesday through Thursday; a total of 75,401 voters cast advance ballots, representing 4.44 percent of all eligible voters. Voters decide individually which of the referendums on the ballot they will vote on, and each person may visit a polling station only once.

Photo: press material from the event