Referendum

"Referendum" is the term given to a direct vote of the electorate required by the legal framework or requested by the Executive or Legislative on an issue of public policy, in contrast with votes cast at elections, which are made in relation to parties or individual candidates and generally reflect voters' preferences over a range of different issues. Referendums may be held in relation to particular circumstances (e.g., to amend a country's constitution) or in relation to particular political issues (e.g., whether or not to join an international organisation) but are in general held in relation to issues of major political significance. The terms used to define referendums may differ in different countries.

Common types of Referendums

The following are the most common types of referendums held in countries across the world:

Mandatory or obligatory referendum

A mandatory or obligatory referendum is a vote of the electorate which is called automatically under circumstances defined in the constitution or in the legislation. The consequences of the vote are usually binding. Therefore, if a proposal passes, the government or appropriate authority is compelled to implement it. Mandatory referendums may be required in relation to pre-determined issues. Typically, these are issues of major national significance, for example, adoption of international treaties, transfer of authority to international bodies, and taxes and public expenditure commitments. In addition, in many countries, proposed amendments to the constitution must be affirmed by a referendum.

Alternatively, mandatory referendums may be required in pre-determined situations. One example is in Presidential systems, where in the case of disagreement between the President and the Legislature, a referendum may be required to resolve the dispute.

Optional or facultative referendum

The second category of referendum is the optional or facultative referendum. These are votes of the electorate which are called by a formal demand, which may emanate from the executive, from a number of members of the legislature, from a number of citizens or from some other defined agent. The consequences of the vote may or may not be binding. A government can decide to initiate a referendum on a major political issue. It might do so because public pressure for a referendum forces it to hold one, or it might choose to hold a referendum because it is divided on the issue at hand. Optional referendums initiated by the government have been held frequently in Europe on the issue of European Union integration (although in some cases, such referendums have been mandatory because they involve an amendment to a country's constitution). Although these referendums may not be legally binding, it may be politically difficult for a government to ignore the outcome.

A further type of optional referendum is the abrogative referendum. An abrogative referendum is a vote of the electorate which may decide to either retain or repeal a law or decree that has been agreed and promulgated by the legislature and already implemented. Usually, citizens force a vote by collecting a certain number of signatures in support of a vote (see citizens’ initiative).

Design and Political issues of Referendums

Location of the referendum in the institutional framework

There are therefore key design features that help to define different types of referendums. The first and perhaps most important is how the referendum fits within a country's overall legal system; are referendums mandatory under a country's constitution or other laws? Is a referendum required to be held, or has it been initiated by the government, legislature, or citizens?

Issues

A second key feature is that of the issues in relation to which referendums can be held. If the circumstances in which referendums can be held are clearly specified in a country's legal framework, the issues on which referendums can be held will be known. Typically, these will relate to issues of major constitutional or political significance, such as a country's constitution, sovereignty, or international relations. A large proportion of referendums held in Europe, for example, have been connected to the issue of European integration. However, where referendums are optional, the subject matter on which they are held may vary. Without restrictions, abrogative referendums could relate to any issue that is the subject of legislation.

Some countries that provide for holding optional/abrogative referendums therefore place restrictions on the issues that can be the subject of referendums. In Uruguay, for example, referendums cannot be held in relation to fiscal policy or laws relating to the executive, whilst in Colombia, political amnesty is barred from being the subject of a referendum (see Case Studies).

Combination of polls

When a referendum is held, it must be decided whether or not it is to be combined with another poll (e.g., an ordinary general election), or whether the referendum is to be held separately. It is sometimes argued that combining polls can increase the risk that voters will confuse separate issues (e.g., the performance of the incumbent government can be confused with the issue on which the referendum is being held). However, from an administrative point of view, it may be more cost effective to hold a referendum at the same time as an election.

The referendum question or ballot text

A second important issue relates to the wording of the referendum question or ballot text put on the ballot paper. Studies suggest that the wording of the question can have an important effect on the outcome of a referendum. Who determines the exact question that appears on the ballot is therefore significant. Is the government responsible for framing the question, even in cases when the government initiates the referendum and therefore has an interest in designing the question to increase the chances of achieving its own desired outcome? Does the Electoral Management Body have oversight of the question? Whoever designs the question, it is important that the question put to voters is clear and straightforward. Studies have generally shown that when voters are in doubt about a referendum issue, they tend to be conservative and maintain the status quo.

Campaign regulations

In relation to the referendum campaign, it is vital to make sure that the voters hear the case put forward on both sides of an issue. Hence, campaign regulations may be implemented to try to ensure that there is a level playing field between organisations campaigning for and against the referendum. These might include limits on campaign expenditure (although in some countries limits may be deemed unconstitutional) and/or controls on the acceptance of campaign contributions, and control on the access to the media. In Quebec, all interested organisations must group themselves into two umbrella groups, while elsewhere any number of organisations can campaign independently for or against an issue being referred to the voters.

The role of the government and provision of information The role of the government in a referendum campaign can also be important. Is the government allowed to campaign for the outcome it supports? Does it distribute its own promotional material or run government broadcasts outlining its views? Similarly, is there a neutral source of information, separate from the government and referendum campaigners, and/or are there requirements providing for the dissemination of non-partisan information about the issue to voters? Does the Electoral Management Body have a role in providing information to voters? If information is provided through a neutral channel, who can put information into this channel? Voters may be more inclined to trust information from sources other than campaigners, and a source of information that is perceived to be neutral will be important to many voters.

Turnout/majority requirements

Finally, a critical issue is when a proposal is judged to have passed. In some countries, a specified approval quorum is necessary for a proposal to pass. That is, a minimum number or percentage of the entire electorate should support the proposal. In others, a referendum vote is only binding if a specified turnout threshold is reached. Finally, some countries require a double majority to pass (e.g., when a referendum must achieve a majority of the overall total votes cast and a majority of votes in at least a specified proportion of defined lower level electoral areas). Clearly, the requirements for a successful referendum have an impact on the likelihood of whether a referendum passes or not.

Legal consequences

The outcome of a referendum may either be legally binding or not. It is legally binding if the government or appropriate authority is compelled to implement it; it is non-binding if it is only advisory upon the government or appropriate authority. The legal consequences of a vote have to be clearly specified either in the constitution or in the ad-hoc decisions that call a referendum. In this context, it is important to distinguish between the legal and political consequences. Even though a referendum is legally consultative, it may for political reasons be difficult for a government or authority to evade the outcome.

Advantages and disadvantages of the referendum instrument

Several arguments are advanced in support of and in opposition to referendums.

Supporters of the use of referendums argue that, in the context of increasing voter apathy and disenchantment with traditional forms of democracy, direct democracy can help to re-engage voters with politics and democracy. Another argument advanced in favour of referendums is that they can be used to resolve political problems, particularly for incumbent governments; where a governing party is divided over an issue, for example, holding a referendum can help reach a solution on the issue without splitting the party (one example of this is the 1975 UK referendum on whether the UK should remain in the EC, an issue over which the ruling Labour government was deeply divided). There is also an argument that governments need a specific popular mandate for any transcendental changes that were not part of the original platform on which they campaigned. This is particularly the case when an amendment to a constitution which itself was approved by referendum is under consideration.

There are also a number of arguments made against the use of referendums. One is that it weakens representative democracy by undermining the role and importance of elected representatives. Further to this point, referendums are sometimes seen as a means available to elected representatives to avoid having to take an unpopular position on a controversial issue. Another is that voters do not always have the capacity or information to make informed decisions about the issue at stake, and instead may make ill-informed decisions based on partial knowledge or on the basis of unrelated factors such as the state of the economy. This trend may be exacerbated in the case of referendums on complex issues such as constitutional change or international treaties, with which voters are likely to be unfamiliar.

Opponents of referendums also argue that, if the executive has the power to determine when referendums are held, they can be used as a political tool to suit the needs of the governing party rather than the interests of democracy. They also claim that, since in many countries turnout at referendums is lower than at national elections, the argument that referendums increase the legitimacy of political decisions does not stand up. However, experts in Switzerland (where a number of direct democracy votes take place each year) believe that, although turnout at referendums is around 45%, more than 45% of electors participate in direct democracy, since different voters participate in the different votes that interest them.