 |
|---|
 Uruguayportal |
A constitutional referendum was held in Uruguay on 29 November 1942, alongside general elections. [1] The new constitution was approved by 77% of voters. [1]
| |
|---|
| Uruguayportal |
A constitutional referendum was held in Uruguay on 29 November 1942, alongside general elections. [1] The new constitution was approved by 77% of voters. [1]
On 18 June 1941 a group of General Assembly members had put forward constitutional amendments. [1] However, it was clear that the proposals would not be approved by a majority of voters, and President Alfredo Baldomir subsequently dissolved the General Assembly on 21 February 1942. [1]
A commission, composed of the largest party, put forward a draft constitution on 28 May, with some small changes to the previous amendments. [1] Baldomir then issued a decree stating that the new constitution would be approved if a majority of those voting were in favour, rather than the previous requirement, established in the 1934 constitution, of a majority of registered voters voting in favour. [1]
The new constitution would limit the President and Vice President to a single term in office. [1] It provided for a bicameral General Assembly, with a Senate elected by proportional representation. [1] The lema system would be abolished. [1]
Constitutional initiatives would be possible if supported by 10% of registered voters (reduced from 20%), with the General Assembly allowed to put forward a counter-proposal. Amendments would require a majority vote in both houses of the General Assembly, approval by a Constitutional Council, and then a referendum, in which at least 35% of registered voters must vote in favour. [1]
| Choice | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| For | 443,414 | 77.17 | |
| Against | 131,163 | 22.83 | |
| Total | 574,577 | 100.00 | |
| Registered voters/turnout | 858,713 | – | |
| Source: Direct Democracy | |||
A constitutional amendment is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly altering the text. Conversely, they can be appended to the constitution as supplemental additions, thus changing the frame of government without altering the existing text of the document.
Constitutional Conventions in Australia are significant meetings that have debated the Australian Constitution. The first two gatherings debated Federation and what form of Constitution to adopt, while the following conventions debated amendments to the document.
A supermajority is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level of support which is greater than the threshold of more than one-half used for a simple majority. Supermajority rules in a democracy can help to prevent a majority from eroding fundamental rights of a minority, but they can also hamper efforts to respond to problems and encourage corrupt compromises at times when action is taken. Changes to constitutions, especially those with entrenched clauses, commonly require supermajority support in a legislature. Parliamentary procedure requires that any action of a deliberative assembly that may alter the rights of a minority have a supermajority requirement, such as a two-thirds vote. In consensus democracy the supermajority rule is applied in most cases.
In Australia, referendums are public votes held on important issues where the electorate may approve or reject a certain proposal. In contemporary usage, polls conducted on non-constitutional issues are known as plebiscites, with the term referendum being reserved solely for votes on constitutional changes, which is legally required to make a change to the Constitution of Australia.
A constitutional referendum was held in Brazil on 21 April 1993 to determine the form of government of the country. After the re-democratization of Brazil, an article in the new Constitution determined the holding of a referendum for voters to decide if the country should remain a republic or become a monarchy again, and if the system of government should be presidential or parliamentary. Voting for "monarchy" and "presidentialism" in tandem would annul one's vote.
A double referendum on constitutional reform was held in Uruguay on 27 March 1938. Both sets of reforms were approved by voters.
A constitutional referendum was held in Uruguay on 26 November 1989 alongside general elections. The proposed changes to the constitution would require state pensions to be increased at the same rate as the salary of civil servants. The proposal was approved by 81.78% of those voting and 72.51% of all registered voters.
A constitutional referendum was held in Uruguay on 24 November 1946, alongside general elections. Two options for amending the constitution were put to voters, but both were rejected.
A constitutional referendum was held in Uruguay on 16 December 1951. The proposed amendments to the constitution were approved by 54% of voters.
A constitutional referendum was held in Uruguay on 27 November 1966 alongside general elections. Four proposals for amending the constitution were put to voters, with one option receiving 65% of the vote. As a result, the colegiado system was abolished in favour of returning to the presidential system.
A constitutional referendum was held in Uruguay on 28 August 1994. The proposals were rejected by 69% of voters.
A fifteen-part constitutional referendum was held in Colombia on 25 October 2003. Whilst all fifteen proposals were approved by voters, only one question had a sufficient numbers of votes to pass the 25% quorum requirement.
A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This article summarises referendum laws and practice in various countries.
The 1997 Constitution of Uruguay refers to the 1967 Constitution with amendments.
The sixth Constitution of Uruguay came into force in 1967.
A constitutional referendum was held in Armenia on 6 December 2015. Its amendments to the constitution put the country on a course from having a semi-presidential system to being a parliamentary republic, with the changes beginning to take place during the 2017–18 electoral cycle. The referendum passed with 66.2% of voters supporting it. Voter turnout was 50.8%, passing the 33% threshold to validate the results.
The Référendum d'initiative Citoyenne is the name given to the proposal for a constitutional amendment in France to permit consultation of the citizenry by referendum concerning the proposition or abrogation of laws, the revocation of politicians' mandates, and constitutional amendment.
A constitutional referendum was held in Lithuania on 12 May 2019, alongside the first round of the presidential elections. Two proposals were put to voters – one to reduce the number of MPs in the Seimas from 141 to 121 and one to allow Lithuanians to hold dual citizenship with a list of countries meeting "European or transatlantic integration criteria," which would be determined by law. In order for the first constitutional amendment to be passed, voter turnout was required to be above 50%, and at least 33.3% of registered voters would have to vote in favour of the proposal. For the second amendment, at least 50% of registered voters would have to vote in favour of the proposal.
The 2019 Uruguayan constitutional referendum, officially referred to as the referendum for constitutional reform on security matters, took place alongside general election of that year, on 27 October 2019, to ask the electorate whether a constitutional reform in public security should be approved. The proposed amendments to the Constitution would create a national guard, forbid early release for some serious crimes, introduce life sentences for crimes of rape, sexual abuse or homicide of minors as well as aggravated homicide of adults, and allow the police to conduct night raids. The referendum resulted in 46.8% of the votes cast in favor of amending the Constitution; however, not reaching the necessary 50%, the amendment was not approved, being rejected by 53.7% of the votes.
A constitutional amendment took place on 22 June 2020 in Armenia. A referendum was initially scheduled for 5 April 2020, but on 16 March 2020 was indefinitely postponed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the absence of a referendum, the parliament instead voted for the constitutional amendment directly.
| Presidential elections | |
|---|---|
| Chamber of Representatives | |
| Senate | |
| Colegiado elections | |
| Constitutional Assembly | |
| Local elections | |
| Referendums | |
