 | This article needs to be updated. The reason given is: Constitution rejected on 17 dec 2023.(December 2023) |
The Constitutional Council in Chile was tasked to draft a new constitution in 2023, submitted to referendum on 17 December 2023. [1] The Constitutional Council was selected by the citizens in an election on 7 May 2023. [2] Councillor Beatriz Hevia was elected President of the Council by her peers on June 7.
The 2022 Chilean national plebiscite was held on 4 September 2022, [3] in order to determine whether the public agreed with the text of a new Political Constitution of the Republic drawn up by the Constitutional Convention. It was commonly referred to as the "exit plebiscite" (plebiscito de salida). [4] [5]
The proposed constitution, which had faced "intense criticism that it was too long, too left-wing and too radical", [6] was rejected by a margin of 62% to 38%. [7] [8]
Boric announced a new process for drafting a new constitution, with Al Jazeera writing, "Most Chileans and their politicians have agreed the constitution that dates from the dictatorship must change." Boric called on the heads of all political parties for a meeting on Monday, 5 September, to chart a path forward. [9] As a result of the rejection, the incumbent 1980 Constitution will remain in force, with The Guardian writing that "Chile's future looks decidedly uncertain," and that, "Boric has expressed a willingness to repeat the constitutional process, but the basis for reform is still very much up for debate." [10] Colombian president Gustavo Petro lamented the win of the rejection vote, considering that Chile had decided to "revive Augusto Pinochet". [11]
The Economist considered that "common sense" had led Chileans to reject the proposed constitution, in what was described as a "blow" for the government of Gabriel Boric. [12]
In the aftermath of the plebiscite the internal division that the Christian Democratic Party's official support for the "Approve" option had created resurfaced, with various calls for a renewed leadership, and some calling for the expulsion of members who had supported the "Reject" option. [13]
Chilean lawmakers announced in December 2022 an agreement to begin drafting a new constitution, three months after a referendum overwhelmingly rejected a progressive first text to replace the 1980 constitution. It was named Agreement for Chile. It was submitted for referendum in December in 2023. It comes after Chileans voted in September 2022 voted against the proposal of a left-wing constitution, leading to President Gabriel Boric reshuffling his cabinet. [2]
A bipartisan agreement was made for a new constitution. [14] The Republican Party and the Party of the People did not participate in the agreement. [14]
It was agreed that the Expert Commission was to work on a first draft from 6 March to 6 June. The Constitutional Council then had to begin its work thirty days after its election, on 6 June 2023 and was to deliver the draft Constitution five months later by 6 November. A mandatory referendum was then held to be held either on November or December 2023. [15] The proposed constitution was rejected.
Senate President Alvaro Elizalde, announced; "Today a new path has opened to progress towards a Constitution born from democracy." The agreement proposed a parity between men and women, participation from indigenous peoples and that the proposals would need to be approved by three-fifths of the advisors. Unlike the previous convention, there will be no quota of seats reserved for Indigenous peoples. The agreement set UP for the new proposed constitution to be drafted over 2023 by a body of 51 so-called constitutional advisors elected by direct vote on 7 May 2023, based on a preliminary draft prepared by a commission of 24 experts from an Expert Commission. As per the agreement, the Expert Commission was formed in March 2023, its 24 members chosen by Congress on behalf of the different pro-government and opposition groups.
The election to determine the seats of the Constitutional Council was held on May 7, 2023. [14] The Council was officially installed on June 7, 2023. Beatriz Hevia (PRCh) was elected as the president of the Council with 33 votes, while Aldo Valle (PS) was elected as the vice president with 17 votes. Aldo Sanhueza (PRCh), who had previously been elected, decided not to take his seat due to revelations of his involvement in a sexual abuse incident in 2019. [16] As a result, the Council consisted of 50 members.
The Political Constitution of the Republic of Chile of 1980 is the fundamental law in force in Chile. It was approved and promulgated under the military dictatorship headed by Augusto Pinochet, being ratified by the Chilean citizenry through a referendum on September 11, 1980, although being held under restrictions and without electoral registers. While 69% of the population was reported to have voted yes, the vote was questioned by hundreds of denunciations of irregularities and fraud. The constitutional text took effect, in a transitory regime, on March 11, 1981, and then entered into full force on March 11, 1990, with the return to electoral democracy. It was amended for the first time in 1989, and afterward in 1991, 1994, 1997, each year from 1999 to 2001, 2003, each year from 2007 to 2015, and each year from 2017 to 2021, with the last three amendments concerning the constituent process of 2020–2022. In September 2005, under Ricardo Lagos's presidency, a large amendment of the Constitution was approved by parliamentarians, removing from the text some of the less democratic dispositions coming from Pinochet's regime, such as senators-for-life and appointed senators, as well as the armed forces' warranty of the democratic regime.
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.
The current Constitution of Bolivia came into effect on 7 February 2009 when it was promulgated by President Evo Morales, after being approved in a referendum with 90.24% participation. The referendum was held on 25 January 2009, with the constitution being approved by 61.43% of voters.
A constitutional referendum was held in Chile on 11 September 1980. The proposed new constitution would replace the 1925 constitution, and was approved by over two-thirds of voters.
A referendum on whether Augusto Pinochet, the head of a military dictatorship, should become president for eight years under resumed civilian rule was held in Chile on October 5, 1988. The "No" side won with 56% of the vote, marking the end of Pinochet's 16+1⁄2-year rule. Democratic elections were held in 1989, leading to the establishment of a new government in 1990.
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 history of the Constitution of Chile dates from 1811. There were 10 constitutional texts and a draft for a federal organization in 1826. Its common elements are the unitary form of state and presidentialism as a form of government.
Referendums in Costa Rica are regulated by law. The main juridical body that regulates is the Law of Referendum or Law 8492. To this date the only nation-wide referendum done since the current Constitution and the afore mentioned referendum regulatory law is in place was the 2007 Costa Rican Dominican Republic – Central America Free Trade Agreement referendum.
A constitutional referendum was held in Chile on 25 October 2020. The referendum asked the citizens whether they wanted a new constitution to be drafted, and if so, whether it should be written by a constitutional convention made up of directly elected citizens or by a mixed convention that was composed of currently serving members of Parliament and half of directly elected citizens. The "Approve" side won by a landslide, with 78% of voters agreeing to draft a new constitution. When it came to deciding how the new text should be written, 79% of voters opted for a "Constitutional Convention." The voter turnout was 51%.
An election for the members of the Constitutional Convention was held in Chile between 15 and 16 May 2021. This election was called after 78% of voters in the 2020 national plebiscite voted to write a new Constitution through this method.
The Constitutional Convention was the constituent body of the Republic of Chile in charge of drafting a new Political Constitution of the Republic after the approval of the national plebiscite held in October 2020. Its creation and regulation were carried out through Law No. 21,200, published on 24 December 2019, which amended the Political Constitution of the Republic to include the process of drafting a new constitution. The body met for the first time on 4 July 2021. Chilean President Sebastian Piñera said, "This Constitutional Convention must, within a period of 9 months, extendable for an additional 3 months, draft and approve a new constitution for Chile, which must be ratified by the citizens through a plebiscite." It ended its functions and declared itself dissolved on 4 July 2022.
A constitutional referendum was held in Chile on 4 September 2022, in order to determine whether the public agreed with the text of a new Political Constitution of the Republic drawn up by the Constitutional Convention. It was commonly referred to as the "exit plebiscite".
La marcha más grande de Chile was a demonstration that took place in Santiago de Chile on October 25, 2019, as part of the 2019–2021 Chilean protests. It was considered a "peaceful concentration" by local authorities and by the national and international press. In Santiago alone, more than 1.2 million people participated, the biggest protest concentration in Chile's modern history, surpassing the record settled in 1988, by the closing rally of the "No" option in the 1988 national plebiscite. In total, it is believed that more than 3 million people across the country participated in the protest.
Non-Neutral Independents is a loose coalition of independent candidates that was created in Chile to participate in the 2021 elections for members of the Constitutional Convention.
Apruebo Dignidad was a democratic socialist Chilean electoral coalition officially created on 11 January 2021, by the Broad Front and Chile Digno in preparation for the Constitutional Convention election.
Constanza Gabriela Schönhaut Soto is a Chilean lawyer who was a member of the Chilean Constitutional Convention (2021–2022).
The proposed Political Constitution of the Republic of Chile was a Constitutional draft written by the Constitutional Convention of Chile between 4 July 2021 and 4 July 2022. An early draft was made available on 14 May 2022. The final proposal was made available on 4 July 2022.
Constitutional Council elections were held in Chile on 7 May 2023. Voting was compulsory, and resulted in an electoral victory for right-wing parties, passing the threshold of a three-fifths majority of constitutional council members to freely draft a new constitution, removing the veto option from left-wing members. This marked a sharp shift from a left-wing majority that freely drafted a rejected first constitutional rewrite in 2021 and was described as a political loss for President Gabriel Boric.
The Expert Commission in Chile was a 24 member body created to assist in the drafting of a new constitution by the second constituent assembly. Its primary objective was to draft a constitution for the Constitutional Council before it began its work, and the commission's text was to be used as a starting point.
A constitutional referendum was held in Chile on 17 December 2023, to determine whether the public approved a new constitution drafted by an appointed committee of experts and amended by an elected Constitutional Council. The new text of the constitution was approved by the Council on 30 October and put to a vote on 17 December.