ROME, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- Two of Italy's wealthy northern regions have voted for more fiscal autonomy from the central government, officials said Monday.
Referendums were held Sunday in Lombardy, which is home to Italy's financial capital Milan, and in Veneto, whose capital is Venice.
The reasoning behind both non-binding referendums, which are permitted under Italy's Constitution, is that taxpayers in the wealthy, industrialized North believe they should not have to subsidise the poorer South.
In Lombardy, over 40 percent of voters turned out, and of these, 95 percent voted in favor of more fiscal autonomy, Lombardy Governor Roberto Maroni said in a statement on the region's official website.
"Thank you to the three million Lombard citizens who turned out to vote, and to the 95 percent who voted (in favor of autonomy)," Maroni said, calling this "a historic result".
The Veneto region made the announcement via Twitter. "Final data: 57.2 percent of voters turned out," officials wrote on the Veneto region's official Twitter account. "Final count: 98.1 percent voted in favor, 1.9 percent voted against."
"Quorum reached, target reached, a new history for our Veneto region begins," tweeted Veneto Governor Luca Zaia.
Both Maroni and Zaia, who promoted the referendums, are members of the right-wing, anti-immigrant Northern League party.
Critics say the referendums were a political move for more visibility ahead of the next general election, likely to be held in spring 2018.
