A referendum on nine proposed amendments to the constitution was held in Micronesia on 4 July 2023. [1] Eight of the amendments were proposed by the Constitutional Convention elected in 2019, and one amendment was proposed by Congress. [2] All nine amendments passed, [3] and were officially ratified by President Simina on 4 October 2023. [4]
The Federated States of Micronesia, abbreviated FSM, is a federal presidential republic consisting of four states, Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae, spread across the western Pacific.
FSM law requires that a referendum on holding a Constitutional Convention must occur at least once every ten years. In a referendum held alongside parliamentary elections in March 2019, a majority of Micronesian voters voted in favor of holding a Constitutional Convention. [5] Constituent elections were held on 4 November 2019, electing 24 delegates to the Constitutional Convention: 11 from Chuuk State, 7 from Pohnpei State, 3 from Kosrae State, and 3 from Yap State. [6] The Constitutional Convention convened on 7 January 2020, [7] but was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic and did not meet between 13 March 2020 [8] and 1 June 2022. [9]
The Constitutional Convention disbanded on 28 June 2022, having proposed 8 constitutional amendments. [10] In November 2022 Congress proposed another amendment, bringing the total number of proposals to be voted on in the subsequent referendum to 9. [2]
In order for an amendment to the constitution to go into effect, it must be approved in a referendum by at least three-quarters of the vote in at least three of the four states. [11]
The nine proposed amendments to the constitution are: [2]
In mid-July the National Election Office was still awaiting results from Chuuk State. [16] [17] In August, the Yap Election Commissioner was accused of having incorrectly calculated the percentage of votes in favor of the amendment on fishing revenues, using the number of registered voters as the denominator rather than the number of valid ballots cast, resulting in an erroneous rejection of the proposal. [18] Since Pohnpei and Kosrae both approved the amendment, the possibility of an incorrect result from Yap was rendered moot by Chuuk's approval. Initial results also indicated that Pohnpei had rejected the amendment on changing the amending threshold, with only 70.25% voting in favor, but a subsequent publication by the national election office corrected the figures and clarified that the amendment was approved. [19] Official results were announced in mid-September. [3]
| Question | Chuuk | Kosrae | Pohnpei | Yap | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % in favor | % in favor | % in favor | % in favor | ||
| Dual citizenship | 86.71 | 86.6 | 87.47 | 78.63 | Approved |
| Eligibility for Congress | 84.71 | 86.0 | 86.03 | 82.58 | Approved |
| Healthy environment | 86.58 | 93.0 | 58.77 | 87.97 | Approved |
| Independent Prosecutor | 86.14 | 86.5 | 80.51 | 83.44 | Approved |
| Land case jurisdiction | 83.04 | 85.7 | 86.03 | 60.53 | Approved |
| Presidential veto | 83.39 | 84.8 | 87.99 | 82.64 | Approved |
| Mining revenue distribution | 86.39 | 87.3 | 87.56 | 75.08 | Approved |
| Fishing revenue sharing | 86.17 | 87.7 | 87.77 | 73.48 | Approved |
| Constitutional amendment threshold | 84.47 | 90.9 | 84.46 | 79.61 | Approved |
| Sources: Direct Democracy, Office of the National Election Director | |||||
All of the proposals met the required thresholds for validation, with six of the proposals being approved by all states and the remaining three meeting the requirement of approval by three out of four states. [19] The amendments were officially ratified by President Simina on 4 October 2023. [4] Congress subsequently passed enabling legislation for several of the amendments, including revisions to revenue sharing of tax incomes between national and state governments in light of the amendment on fishing license revenue sharing. [20]
The referendum was the first time since 1991 that an amendment was approved by voters. The adoption of the amendment lowering the amending threshold to two thirds of voters in three quarters of states will facilitate the approval of future proposals. [3]
The Federated States of Micronesia, or simply Micronesia, is an island country in Micronesia, a subregion of Oceania. It consists of four states—from west to east, Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae—that are spread across the western Pacific. Together, the states comprise around 607 islands that cover a longitudinal distance of almost 2,700 km (1,700 mi) just north of the equator. They lie northeast of Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, south of Guam and the Marianas, west of Nauru and the Marshall Islands, east of Palau and the Philippines, about 2,900 km (1,800 mi) north of eastern Australia, 3,400 km (2,100 mi) southeast of Japan, and some 4,000 km (2,485 mi) southwest of the main islands of the Hawaiian Islands.
Geography of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), a country located in the western Pacific Ocean, and in the Micronesia cultural and ecological sub-region of Oceania. While its total land area is very small at 702 km2 (271 sq mi), it has the 14th largest exclusive economic zone at 2,996,419 km2 (1,156,924 sq mi).
The flag of the Federated States of Micronesia was adopted on 30 November 1978. The blue field represents the Pacific Ocean. In an echo of U.S. heraldic practice, the stars represent the four federated states: Chuuk, Pohnpei, Kosrae and Yap, arranged like the points of the compass.
Chuuk State is one of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). The other states are Kosrae State, Pohnpei State, and Yap State. It consists of several island groups: Namoneas, Faichuuk, the Hall Islands, Namonuito Atoll, Pattiw, and the Mortlock Islands. Chuuk is by far the FSM's most populous state, with 50,000 inhabitants on 120 square kilometers. Chuuk Lagoon is where most people live. Weno island, in the lagoon, is Chuuk's state capital and the country's biggest city. It may hold a referendum on independence in the near future, although this referendum has been repeatedly postponed.
Yap State is one of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). The other states are Kosrae State, Pohnpei State, and Chuuk State.
The Federated States of Micronesia Football Association or FSMFA is the governing body of football in the Federated States of Micronesia, and of the national team. They are not a member of FIFA or a regional confederation.
The College of Micronesia-FSM (COM-FSM) is a public community college in the Federated States of Micronesia. It began operation in 1963 as the Micronesian Teacher Education Center.
Parliamentary elections were held in the Federated States of Micronesia on 6 March 2007, alongside a double referendum. Thirty-five candidates competed for the fourteen seats in Congress. As there were no political parties, all candidates ran as independents.
Parliamentary elections were held in the Federated States of Micronesia on 8 March 2005, alongside a three-part referendum. As no political parties existed, all 23 candidates for the 10 available seats in Congress ran as Independents.
The Federated States of Micronesia's National Police is the small national police force of the Federated States of Micronesia and is a division of the FSM Department of Justice.
Parliamentary elections were held in the Federated States of Micronesia on 8 March 2011, alongside a three-part referendum. As there were no political parties, all 34 candidates ran as independents. For the first time in the country's history, two women ran for election, both in Chuuk State. However, neither was elected.
Robert James Weilbacher, Sr. was a Micronesian politician and former Governor of Kosrae state. Weilbacher served as the governor of Kosrae from February 2007 until January 2011.
A constitutional referendum was held in the Federated States of Micronesia on 27 August 2002. Voters were asked whether they approved of 14 separate amendments to the country's constitution. To be approved, the proposal required at least 75% of voters in at least three of the four states to vote in favour. Ultimately all 14 proposals were rejected, as none passed the 75% threshold in any state.
An independence referendum for Chuuk State to secede from the Federated States of Micronesia was originally scheduled to take place in March 2015. However, it has been delayed three times and it is uncertain if it will take place. The most populous of the four states within the FSM, Chuuk has high levels of unemployment and there are long-standing tensions over the distribution of funding within the FSM. Other concerns include political power within the federation and the preservation of cultural identity.
Parliamentary elections were held in the Federated States of Micronesia on 7 March 2017, alongside a referendum on allowing dual citizenship. Although the proposed constitutional amendment to allow dual citizenship was approved by a majority of voters, it did not pass the threshold of 75% voting in favour in at least three of the four states.
Parliamentary elections were held in the Federated States of Micronesia on 5 March 2019, alongside a referendum on calling a Constitutional Convention. All 14 seats in Congress were up for election, and all 13 incumbents standing for re-election were returned to Congress.
Constitutional Convention elections were held in the Federated States of Micronesia on 5 November 2019. The elections were held following a referendum in March 2019, in which 61% of voters voted in favour of calling a convention.
The 2023 Micronesian Futsal Cup, commonly referred to as Micro Cup 2023, was the inaugural edition of the Micronesian Futsal Cup, the international futsal championship organised by Federated States of Micronesia Football Association for the men's national teams of Micronesia. It was the first competition of any kind for the FSM islands for five years and its first futsal event.
The separatist movement in the Faichuk Islands is a political movement calling for autonomy and independence for the Faichuk Islands located in the state of Chuuk, in the Federated States of Micronesia, a federal country also made up of the states of Kosrae, Pohnpei and Yap.
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| Constitutional Conventions | |
| Referendums | |
