Referendums Around the World by Matt Qvortrup

Author:Matt Qvortrup
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Springer International Publishing, Cham

Rules for Using Referendums and Initiatives in the US

Rules for using referendums vary widely in North America. In the US, every state’s constitution but one requires that amendments to the state’s constitution be referred by the legislature to voters for approval. Some states also require that public bonds may only be sold if approved by voters.

Rules requiring popular consent for state constitutional amendments largely pre-date the Populist and Progressive eras . Cronin notes that Connecticut adopted the provision in 1818, and that by the 1850s it had become common for state constitutions to first be approved by voters (Cronin 1989: 41). All state legislatures can also refer policy questions to voters. In nearly all the American cases, results of legislatively referred measures are binding. As illustrated below, the measures written and placed on the ballot by legislatures constitute the majority of referendum votes in American states.

Rules allowing a strong, Populist version of direct democracy are found in several American states. Table 5.1 lists the 24 American states that have provisions for the popular initiative, and the 24 that allow the popular referendum.Table 5.1Number of state popular referendums and initiatives in the US, through 2016

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