Referendums and initiatives are both direct democracy devices through which the voters can control the actions of state government. A referendum begins as a measure adopted by the legislature that is submitted to the electorate to be approved or rejected. Its main purpose is to prevent the legislature from adopting a measure without voter approval. An initiative, on the other hand, both begins and ends with electorate action. A group of people may put a measure on the ballot, and if a sufficient majority of the voters approve the measure, it becomes law. Its primary purpose is to obtain legislation that there is reason to believe the legislature will not pass. There are two types of initiatives: direct and indirect. A direct initiative is submitted directly to the voters without the inclusion of any legislative body, while an indirect initiative is proposed by the people and submitted to the legislature for approval (at which point it then becomes a referendum
Referendums can serve many purposes, ranging from the adoption of new constitution, a new constitutional amendment, or a new law, to the recall of a certain government or even a certain government official. There are different requirements for the filing of different types of referendums and initiatives, concerning how many signatures are needed, the minimum number of days it must be submitted before an upcoming election, petition contents, and to whom it must be submitted (usually it is the City Clerk’s office). Examples of Chicago’s guidelines for two types of referenda can be found here:
Return Home
Community Tips from the Pilsen Alliance
|
- On a local level, referendums are just advisory and cannot be legally binding. However, they can be a useful tool as part of a larger campaign, when combined with other community outreach strategies.
- Referendums can be used for precincts, not just entire wards, which is useful for an organization like the Pilsen Alliance whose constituency makes up only a part of Ward 26.
- Pilsen Alliance had one of its board members, an attorney, draft the petition, using wording from the Chicago City Clerk’s website. The wording was similar to a petition for someone running for office.
- After the petition was prepared, Pilsen Alliance had to go door-to-door in the community to get signatures.
- For this specific case, in 2000, the referendum was used as part of a larger campaign to create a more community-oriented process for local development; the Pilsen is Not for Sale Campaign.
- The referendum was decided on after the Alderman had promised to use a large TIF for industrial and not residential development, after going back on his word. The Pilsen Alliance challenged him through public action, and on the heels of that victory, the group wanted to continue to stop gentrification in Pilsen through this referendum.
- Putting the referendum on the ballot was one tool to put pressure on creating a more open process of development and to increase understanding of the issue among community members and voters.
- It was important to understand what a referendum can and cannot accomplish, especially since it’s not legally binding. Other tools that were useful in combination with the referendum included workshops on gentrification and direct actions with developers. Alone, the referendum would not have created change.
- In the end, the Pilsen Alliance had almost 2,000 voters turn out as a part of their non-partisan, “get out the vote” campaign, and the referendum passed with 97.3% of the vote.
- With the public showing of support, the Alderman realized the need for a Community Advisory Panel, which included community members and local businesses and non-profits.
- In 2006 Pilsen Alliance had another referendum, but this one was less successful because it focused too much on specific policy in a way that was difficult to educate voters on. As referendums are placed at the end of a ballot, it is important to teach community members how to vote, to read the ballot all the way through, and to understand what the referendum is about.
Return Home
|