An abortion referendum will take place in the small Republic of San Marino on the 26th of September, one of the few States in Europe that still protects pre-born life.

The plebiscite will ask citizens if they want to make abortion legal up to 12 weeks – and beyond this term “in case of risks for the life of the woman or if there are serious malformations of the foetus” No quorum is required for the validity of the referendum, and due to the local rules, campaigning can only start 15 days before the date of the vote (on the 10th of September).

Nicola Speranza, Secretary General of the pro-family group FAFCE said the result is very uncertain. “I’m not informed on any survey available, but the atmosphere is very negative, as you can imagine. All political parties are in favour of the change, besides the biggest ruling party, the Sammarinese Christian Democratic Party” he said.