A low turnout is threatening to invalidate the result of a contentious referendum vote in Italy on whether to scrap some of Europe's toughest restrictions on assisted fertility.
Italian cardinals and bishops - endorsed by Pope Benedict XVI - urged citizens to boycott the two-day referendum, hoping the ballot initiatives would fall short of the required quorum to be valid.
The vote on overturning bans on assisted fertility procedures - including sperm and egg donation - was widely seen as a test of the Catholic Church's influence in the overwhelmingly Catholic country.
To be valid, the referendums must be voted on by at least 50 per cent-plus one of the electorate. The vote continues this morning, but the chances of reaching the 50 per cent validation mark are thought to be remote.
By the end of the first day of voting, turnout was only 18.7 per cent, according to the Interior Ministry. Some referendum advocates had earlier estimated that turnout would have to be nearly double on the first day that to succeed by the end of the two-day vote.
The pope has argued the efforts to overturn parts of the law regulating assisted fertility methods posed threats to life and the family. Italian politicians were split, with parties generally telling their voters to decide according to their conscience.