Referendum in France

The national referendum in France takes place on the initiative of the President of the French Republic, on proposal of the French government or the French Parlement.

Since the constitutional law of the bearing March 28th, 2003 decentralized organization of France, however, one admits a referendum of local initiative .

Definition

The recourse to the referendum rises from the Souveraineté of the Peuple envisaged by the Constitution of 1958:

Article 3. - “The national Souveraineté belongs to the people which exert it by his representatives and the way of the referendum…”

(Note:: the Constitution mixes here processes of direct democracy and representative democracy).

Typology of the referendums

The referendum, whose article 3 of the Constitution makes a method of exercise of the national Souveraineté, is a procedure of vote making it possible to directly consult the voters on a question or a text, which will be adopted only in the event of positive response.

The Constitution envisages four cases of referendum: three nationals, for the adoption of a bill, the authorization of the ratification of a treaty (art.11), and to revise the constitution (art.89), and a room, to subject to the decision voters of a territorial collectivity a project of concerning act its competence (Article 72-1). No referendum can relate to “the republican shape of the government” (Article 89).

National referendums

Two principal articles

Article 11: the legislative referendum

Article 11, on the organization of the Public authorities, on the reforms relating to the social economic policy and the Public services which contribute to it, or the ratification of a treated.

“the President of the Republic, on a proposal from the Government throughout session or on joint proposal of the two assemblies, published in the Official journal, can subject to the referendum all bearing Bill on the Organization of the Public authorities, on Réforme S relating to the social economic policy or of the Nation and to the Public services which contribute to it, or tending to authorize the ratification of a treated which, without being against the Constitution, would affect the operation of the Institution S.”

In the event of victory of yes:

“… when the referendum concluded with the adoption from the Bill, the President of the Republic promulgates the Loi in the fifteen days which follow the proclamation of the results of the consultation…”

Article 89: the constituent referendum

“the initiative of the revision of the Constitution belongs jointly to the President of the Republic on a proposal from the Prime Minister and to the members of the Parliament.

the project or the proposal for a revision must be voted by the two assemblies in identical terms. The revision is final after being approved by referendum.

However, the project of revision is not presented to the referendum when the President of the Republic decides to submit it to the Parliament convened in Congress; in this case, the project of revision is not approved that if it joins together the majority of the three fifths of the votes cast. The office of the Congress is that of the National Assembly.

No procedure of revision can be committed or continued when it is undermined the integrity of the territory.

the republican shape of the Government cannot be the subject of a revision. ”

“… the project or the proposal for a revision must be voted by the two assemblies in identical terms. The revision is final after being approved by referendum…”

Discusses on the application of these two articles

By twice, the President of the Republic Charles de Gaulle used article 11 on the public authorities instead of article 89 on the revision of the Constitution (use of the legislative referendum as a constituent referendum).

It acts, in 1962, of the election of the President by the universal direct suffrage, which will transform the parliamentary mode into parliamentary Régime presidentialized (where the President of the Republic dominates, even if all the other characteristics of the parliamentary mode are preserved, which in theory is impossible and in practice is single in France). The bill will be adopted. Then, in 1969, on the reform of the Sénat and the creation of the Régions as a Territorial collectivity, where there on the contrary, the referendum will be rejected, which will lead to the resignation of the General.

This application of article 11, whose formalities are much more flexible than those of article 89 - what, in practice plays a determining role, since the reason for which the General did not wish to pass by article 89 was that it knew that it would not have the support of the Parliament and thus that the project could never pass - was criticized much, even if many authors also ratified his action.

It is considered that the referendum is the mark of the most obvious Souveraineté of the people (Direct democracy). Thus, when the Constitutional council was brought to come to a conclusion about the validity of the use of article 11, it declined its competence, estimating that the will of the people could not be sullied with illegality and that it did not return to him, as a capacity made up (resulting from the Constitution), to bring limits to the originating Pouvoir constituting.

Article 88-5 on the adhesion of a State with the European Union

“Any bill authorizing the ratification of a treaty relating to the adhesion of one State to the European Union and the European Communities is subjected to the referendum by the President of the Republic.

88-5, in its drafting in force to the coming into effect of the treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe, is not applicable to adhesions making following an intergovernmental conference whose convocation was decided by the European Council before the 1 {{er}} July 2004. ”

The local referendum

Article 72-1 on the referendum of local initiative

Article 72-1 was introduced into the Constitution by the constitutional law of March 28th, 2003 on the decentralized organization of the Republic

“the law fixes the conditions under which the voters of each Territorial collectivity can, by the exercise of the right of petition, to ask the inscription the day order of the assembly deliberating on this community of a question concerned with its competence.

Under the conditions envisaged by the organic law, the projects of deliberation or concerning act the competence of a territorial collectivity can, with its initiative, subjected being, by the way of the referendum, with the decision of the voters of this community.

By the conjugation of these the first two subparagraphs (right of petition and local referendum), it is possible to consider that the local referendum can be a popular referendum of Initiative, even if its existence is not recognized formally in France (the right of petition would then be used for " to ask the inscription the day order of the assembly deliberating on the question of the organization of a consultation of the voters " on a concerning precise subject the competence of a territorial collectivity).

In the event of victory of yes:

“… Under the conditions envisaged by the Organic law, the projects of deliberation or concerning act the competence of a territorial collectivity can, with its initiative, subjected being, by the way of the referendum, with the decision of the voters of this community…”

The general Code of the territorial collectivities, modified by the Organic law of the precise August 27th 2003: “Article LO 1112-7. - The project subjected to local referendum is adopted if half at least the registered voters took share with the Scrutin and if it joins together the majority of the votes cast”. (The threshold of participation does not exist for the referendums of articles 11 and 89).

This local referendum is one of the facets of the local governorship.

Other local referendums

Even if the concept even of local referendum appeared only in 2003, there had already been in France of the local applications of the national referendums. They are the referendums on the self-determination of populations belonging to France, in particular the referendum on the self-determination of Algeria of January 8th, 1961 and the Référendum on self-determination in New Caledonia of November 6th, 1988 (taken pursuant to article 11).

It was about old article 60 (repealed by the constitutional revision of 1995), which laid down the recourse to the referendum for the adoption of the agreements within the framework of the French Communauté.

Today, it is article 72-1 subparagraph 3 which replaces it:

When it is planned to create a territorial collectivity equipped with a particular status or to modify its organization, it can be determined by the law to consult the voters registered in the interested communities. The modification of the limits of the territorial collectivities can also give place to the consultation of the voters under the conditions envisaged by the law. ”

The revision of the laws chief clerks

In the cases of article 11,72-1, and 89, the result of a referendum can be demolishes without recourse to a new referendum:

by a law (simple or organic according to the case) for a referendum of article 11,
a law of constitutional revision approved by the Congress (rather than by referendum) for article 89
or a new deliberation of the local assembly having convened the referendum of article 72-1.

However, politically, it is dangerous for an elected official to modify, to even remove, a law chief clerk which expresses the will of the people.

List referendums in France

See the article dedicated to the European Constitution and the articles Referendum on the European constitution and French Referendum on the European constitution.

External bonds

Presentation of the various categories of detailed referendum on life-publique.fr
Historical of the referendums under the 5th Republic (ministry for the Interior)
Historical less detailed (site of the Constitutional council).

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