Italy's prime minister resigns after landslide defeat in referendum vote
Italy's prime minister Matteo Renzi announced his resignation in Rome shortly after midnight on Monday, after losing a critical referendum battle on which he staked his political career.
"Italy has chosen. Now it's up to those who won to make proposals," Renzi said during a press conference at Palazzo Chigi, the prime minster's residence, in Rome. "I take all responsibility for the defeat."
Italians voted Sunday on whether to significantly cut the number of senators in Italy's government, a move Renzi argued would significantly cut bureaucracy in Italy an obscure debate were not for Renzi's declaration earlier this year that he would resign if "Yes" did not win.
"No" won by a large margin, with results showing 60%-40% in its favor as of this publication.
The result is seen as a rejection of Renzi and his leadership, and leaves an opening for Beppe Grillo and his increasingly powerful populist Five Star Movement to fill the void.
http://www.businessinsider.com/matteo-renzi-resigns-2016-12
But Italy has had about 60 governments since WW II, or about one per year. Italy is more or less proof that a nation doesn't need a functioning federal government.