REVISTA DE CIENCIA POLГЌTICA / VOLUMEN 29/ NВ° 1 / 2009 / 23 – 55

The Usage Government-Initiated Referendums in Latin America. Towards a Theory of Referendum Causes

El uso de los referendos de iniciativa gubernamental en AmГ©rica Latina. Hacia una teorГ­a las that are sobre del uso de votaciones populares iniciadas por el gobierno

ANITA BREUER

Department of Comparative Politics, University of Cologne

In the last two years there’s been a substantial boost in how many referendums global. The literature that is existing direct democracy has thus far did not explain this occurrence by delivering a frequent concept from the reasons for referendums. This study that is explorative at undertaking steps toward shutting this space by concentrating on the precise kind of facultative government-initiated referendums (FGIR) and their used in presidential systems. Utilizing QC A (a case-sensitive technique based regarding the formal logic of Boolean algebra), this research systematically compares the governmental possibility structures of 49 presidential systems from 12 Latin US nations to detect the factors that spurred or obstructed the event of FGIR. It concludes that FGIR are closely associated with high degrees of celebration system fragmentation and split federal government, for example. two facets that have always been deemed problematic into the context of presidential systems, while their obstruction is especially owed into the particular provisions that are constitutional the referendum device.

Keyword Phrases: Referendums, Latin America, Fragmentation, Direct Democracy.

RESUMEN

En las Гєltimas dos dГ©cadas Ma existido alrededor del mundo un considerable aumento en el nГєmero de votaciones populares. No na sabido explicar el fenГіmeno mediante una teorГ­a consistente de las causas de los referendums sin embargo, la literatura existente sobre democracia directa. Este estudio exploratorio busca dar un paso adelante para cerrar esta brecha, enfocГЎndose en los referendum facultativos iniciados por poderes polГ­ticos formales (facultative government-initiated referendums – FGIR) y su uso en los sistemas presidenciales. Utilizando OCA (tГ©cnica basada en lГіgica formal de ГЎlgebra booleanas), este estudio hace una comparaciГіn sistemГЎtica de la estructura de oportunidades polГ­ticas de 49 sistemas www.sex-match.org/flingster-review/ presidenciales de 12 paГ­ses de AmГ©rica Latina, para detectar los factores que estimulan u obstruyen la ocurrencia de FGIR. Se concluye que los FGIR estГЎn fuertemente ligados a altos niveles de fragmentaciГіn partidaria y gobiernos divididos, 2 factores que han sido problemГЎticos en los contextos de sistemas presidenciales. Por su parte, la se that is obstrucciГіn principalmente a provisiones constitucionales especГ­ficas que regulan los dispositivos de las votaciones populares iniciadas por el gobierno.

Palabras Clave: Plebiscito, AmГ©rica Latina, fragmentaciГіn, democracia directa.

I. INTRODUCTION 1

From the 1960s onwards, different countries around the globe embraced the notion of direct democracy and in the last two years, the program of direct democratic instruments has grown significantly (LeDuc, 2003). 2 This trend has attracted scholarly attention and over the past few years, considerable research investigating direct democracy happens to be posted in distinguished journals in the area of governmental technology. Thus far this literary works has mainly dedicated to the 2 countries that many usually utilize referendums, Switzerland in addition to usa from the continuing state degree (Ladner and Brandle, 1999; Gerber, 1996; Papadopulos, 2001; Tolbert and Hero, 1996; Vatter and Freitag, 2006), while an inferior wide range of magazines have actually dedicated to the revolution of referendums entailed in the act of European integration (Hug and Sciarini, 2000; Franklin et ah, 1995). These magazines have greatly added to the knowledge concerning the impact of referendums on politics as well as on diverse societal aspects. Nevertheless, they will have perhaps maybe not yet produced a constant concept on the factors that cause referendums. The aim of this paper is always to undertake initial actions towards bridging this space.

To an extent that is large the ‘boom’ in direct democracy may be credited toward the increased quantity of citizen-initiated referendums and, to a smaller level, mandatory referendums (Morel, 2001) This development was welcomed by advocates of direct democracy whom stress the possibility of the tools to foster bottom-up participation and straight accountability (Barber, 1984; Schmitter, 2000). However, on a few occasions, non-mandatory referendums on essential governmental questions have already been initiated by regulating bodies i.e. legislatures or professionals. Such government-initiated referendums, which can be known as plebiscites, 3 a phrase that holds a small negative connotation, largely retain control of governmental decision-making in the possession of of elected officials.

The occurrence of facultative government-initiated referendums (FGIR) 4 poses a theoretical puzzle (Rahat, 2007) despite contributing little to the overall increase in direct democracy.

Even though it is understandable that residents will be involved in processes of decision-making when because of the directly to do so, governmental elites’ usage of direct democratic instruments is harder to grasp. Just just What motivates regulating authorities to start referendums? Why should democratically legitimised representatives voluntarily offer up their monopoly to legislate, redistribute energy downwards, equal themselves with ordinary residents in governmental decision-making, and eventually expose on their own towards the threat of losing during the ballot field? The main goal of this study that is explorative to give you possible answers to those concerns.