The planned independence referendum in Eastern Ukraine is unconstitutional and anti-democratic

Separatists in Eastern Ukraine are planning to stage an independence referendum in Ukraine this weekend, despite criticism from the international community. With comparisons to international comparisons held in a number of other states, Matt Qvortrup considers the democratic credentials of the vote. He argues that holding a referendum now represents the majority attempting to impose its views on the minority, and that a vote on Eastern Ukraine’s future should only take place once there has been a negotiated settlement among all parties in the region

“Oops I did it again!” Cameron and the Britney Spears model of constitutional reform

Constitutional change in the UK has progressed haphazardly in recent years, and with the benefit of hindsight many of the changes might be considered imprudent or ill-thought through. Matt Qvortrup argues that “Oops, I did it again”, the 2000 hit by pop princess Britney Spears could be a leitmotif in constitutional reforms undertaken by successive governments since the 1970, and possibly even before

Referendums, democracy and separatism

There have been referendums on separatism for longer than there has been democracy. Allowing areas to vote on independence or on whether to belong to another state or territory is a practice that goes back as far as the 14th century, though it is only in the 20th century that it really took off. While many claim a right to self-determination’, there is no formal legal right to hold referendums on secession, unless there are constitutional provisions for this, a specific agreement between the parties, or if the country is a former colony. Of the referendums on independence that have been held, very few have yielded yes’ votes in developed democratic societies

Schmitt, Dicey, and the power and limits of referendums in the United Kingdom

Carl Schmitt and AV Dicey are two of history's most influential constitutional theorists, and they offer two of history's most influential accounts of referendums. In most respects, their approaches to referendums are in direct opposition to each other. On Schmitt's view, the purpose of referendums is to acclaim executive actors. On Dicey's view, the role of referendums is to constrain them. Despite disagreeing about whether referendums should acclaim or constrain the executive, Schmitt and Dicey agree that an agenda-setting role for representatives in referendums is inevitable. This paper argues that, in the UK context, if Schmitt and Dicey are right about the necessary agenda-setting power of representatives in referendums, then the accounts of referendums they each offer must be two sides of the same coin. Given the dominance of the executive over the legislature in the UK and the uncodified nature of the constitution, referendums are processes that necessarily both acclaim and limit the executive

Fremmede lande er en fejltagelse

Matt Qvortrup fortæller om baggrunden for Brexit og optakten til den igangværende krise

It’s the question, stupid: democracy experts respond to the EU referendum question proposals

The Electoral Commission has this week set out its advice on the wording of the question in a proposed referendum on the UK’s membership of the European Union. In this post, leading democracy experts share their views on the alternative questions, considering the implications for the campaign and drawing on evidence from previous referendums in the UK and elsewhere

When who and how matter: explaining the success of referendums in Europe

This article aims to identify the institutional factors that make a referendum successful. This comparative analysis seeks to explain the success of top-down referendums organized in Europe between 2001 and 2013. It argues and tests for the main effect of three institutional factors (popularity of the initiator, size of parliamentary majority, and political cues during referendum campaigns) and controls for the type of referendum and voter turnout. The analysis uses data collected from referendums and electoral databases, public opinion surveys, and newspaper articles. Results show that referendums proposed by a large parliamentary majority or with clear messages from political parties during campaign are likely to be successful