Plebiscite

“ The authors of the Plebiscite are foremost among this army of ingrates, but they go even further than politics, and venture their ridicule on more sacred matters, a step which much greater men than Erckmann-Chatrian have attempted before now, and for which they have repented when too late. ”

“ On August 14th it was concluded that the quickest and least dangerous way of securing assent to the sale was by an appeal to the people, not through a general election, but through a plebiscite, in which every man and woman of twenty-nine would vote, under the provisions of the New Constitution. ”

“ You are all mistaken; the Plebiscite will not consolidate the dynasty. Up to now neither Italy nor Prussia thought that it could maintain itself à la longue in France, where it was firmly believed that no political regime was able to last beyond a few years. The results of the Plebiscite have proved that this conviction was an erroneous one; and the consequences will be that both these nations will use their best endeavours to inveigle the Emperor into a war. It is very well known that France is unprepared. ”

“ The Emperor has resorted to a plebiscite—viz., a vote by ballot and universal suffrage—as to certain popular changes which circumstances compel him to substitute for his former personal rule. Is there a single intelligent Liberal who is not against that plebiscite?—is there any such who does not know that the appeal of the Emperor to universal suffrage and vote by ballot must result in a triumph over all the variations of free thought, by the unity which belongs to Order, represented through an able man at the head of the State? The multitude never comprehend principles ”

“ One cannot wonder at people's being distrustful of the use he may make of it. The submitting the present changes in the Constitution to a plébiscite is certainly legally necessary and admitted to be so by all parties. ”

“ A simple act of the Realm shall further suffice where one of the Lands affected does not consent, but where the alteration of a frontier or the creation of a new Land is demanded by the wishes of the population and there is an overwhelming national interest in favour of it.
The wishes of the population shall be ascertained by means of a plebiscite. The Government of the Realm shall order a plebiscite to take place if one-third of the total number of those who have a vote for the [271] Reichstag, living within the territory affected, demand it. ”

“ There is always need for those who are on the right side of any important question to unfurl their banners and show their colors bravely, but just now, in connection with the temperance movement in our Dominion, there is a very special call for action presented by the Plebiscite. ”

“ To find these finest spirits and broadest minds we might conceivably use the existing representative machinery of Parliament, or some reformed representative system; or we might institute a special straining and sifting process, by means of plebiscite within plebiscite, till we were reasonably sure of arriving at the men best fitted to be entrusted with a high, coherent plan of education. ”

“ The English nation, when it put William of Orange on the throne, would have been as entirely within its rights and privileges had it put him down from it. When a sovereign accepts a crown from the vote of a majority, he must in reason admit that another larger and later majority can withdraw it from his keeping. A plebiscite cannot confer Divine Right. ”

“ The only strong expression of political opinion that was engineered in France then was the so-called plebiscite of May, 1870; the government challenged the verdict of the entire male population of France upon the policy of Napoleon III. during the past eighteen years, and did so with the intention, strangely enough not perceived by Prime Minister Ollivier, of re-converting the so-called constitutional Empire which had been in existence since January 1, 1870, into an autocracy. Sensible people saw that the plebiscite was only an objectionable comedy ”

“ The plébiscite is a revolutionary, or at least abnormal, proceeding. It is not preceded by debate. The form and nature of the question to be submitted to the nation is chosen and settled by the men in power. Rarely, indeed, when a plébiscite has been taken, has the voting itself been either free or fair. Taine has a strange tale to tell of the methods by which a Terrorist faction, when all but crushed by general odium, extorted from the country by means of the plébiscite a sham assent to the prolongation of revolutionary despotism. ”

“ The American Republic, which has freed serfs and abolished leisure, possesses a peculiar stability, which will outwear its occasional corruption because it exists through a landed democracy—one impossible in overcrowded Europe—as we shall find Disraeli emphasising in my American chapter.
In a word, the logical outcome of the “Sovereignty of the People” is the tyranny of plebiscite. But a “plebiscite” dispenses with the very principle of representation, for where68 all decide equally, why should any be represented? ”

“ The organic constitutional law relating to Congress shall regulate the remaining matters with regard to the vetoes on reform bills and their discussion in Congress.
Article 129
The convening of the plebiscite must take place within thirty (30) days following the date on which both Chambers have insisted upon the proposal approved by them, and is decided by supreme decree fixing the date on which the plebiscite is to be held, which may not take place earlier than thirty (30) days or later than sixty (60) days after the publication of this decree. ”

“ In the further interest of the citizens the tribunes had the unrestricted right to call the plebs to a contio and address them at any time and on any subject, to form them when so assembled into voting groups, at first curiae and after 471, tribes, and to take their votes on proposals affecting plebeian interests, plebiscites being from the beginning binding on the plebeian body in so far as they harmonized with the laws of the state. ”

“ I want you to know that although it might well be within my province as Captain of the Sunward to decide which of the alternatives we will take, I will not do so. What is decided here will affect all of Earth's peoples everywhere. Neither one man nor one small group can make this choice. Therefore, exactly one hour before the deadline, we will hold a plebiscite. Every person aboard the Sunward will have exactly one vote, and the majority decision will hold. ”

“ The Commission on Elections shall promulgate rules necessary for the conduct of plebiscite, including those for the accreditation of plebiscite monitors, voluntary inclusion in the plebiscite, and the special registration of voters as provided herein, within fifteen (15) days from the effectivity of this Organic Law, with the primary objective of optimizing the opportunity for participation in the plebiscite of qualified voters in the areas specified for the establishment of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region. ”

“ It may be doubted whether the adoption of the plebiscite would have the results that they anticipate, but it cannot be doubted that a compact body of representatives, aiming at the democratisation of the constitution and willing to support whichever party makes the highest bid for their votes, have but to remain united to achieve their object, especially when it is in accordance with the natural evolution of Parliamentary government. ”

“ By the care it takes to exclude [173] efficiency, it has made the Chamber of Deputies (with some few exceptions) a body resembling itself with absolute fidelity both in respect of the superficial character of its knowledge and the violence of its prejudices; with the result in my opinion that the crowd might just as well govern directly and, without the intervention of representatives, by means of the plebiscite.
The same thing applies to the Senate, though perhaps in a more direct fashion. The Senate is chosen by the delegates of universal suffrage. ”

“ The plebiscite of the 20th of December ratified by a huge majority the coup d’état in favour of the prince-president, who alone reaped the benefit of the excesses of the Republicans and the reactionary passions of the monarchists.
The second attempt to revive the principle of 1789 only served as a preface to the restoration of the Empire. The new anti-parliamentary constitution of the 14th of January 1852 was to a large extent merely a repetition of that of the year VIII. All executive power was entrusted The Second Empire. ”

“ It is obvious that there are many difficulties of detail in its application; that a plébiscite may be a mere form and not reflect the real wishes of the population concerned, and under military control it can be used as an instrument for obtaining an apparent sanction for oppression, and that in populations of mixed race it is very difficult of application. But it should not be impossible to guard against the defeat of the principle through defects in the working machinery. Plébiscites, where used at the end of the war, might be carried out under international supervision. ”

“ Lord Lyons to Lord Clarendon. Paris, April 21, 1870.
The prospects of the quiet establishment of Constitutional Government are in some respects better and in some worse. They are better inasmuch as men of property, bankers, and others, are giving money and exerting themselves to obtain a decided success for the Plébiscite. ”

“ In such countries democracy tends much less naturally to the parliamentary system than to some form of dictatorship, to some despotism resting on and justified by a plébiscite. It is probable that many transitions in this direction will take place. ”

“ The importance of these amendments requires that they be submitted to the people for ratification or re­jection squarely and without the introduction of extraneous and irrelevant issues, and this would be impossible if the plebiscite were held on the same date as that set for the next regular election of local officers. The proposed amendments affect only the national Government and should be acted upon by the voters independently of local political interests or considerations. ”

“ Assemblies have been elected by universal suffrage, whose tendencies have been reactionary and undemocratic, and who have been supported in this reactionary policy by an effective public opinion. Or the French people have by means of a plebiscite delegated their Sovereign power to an Imperial dictator, whose whole political system was based on a deep suspicion of the source of his own authority. A particular group of political institutions or course of political action may, then, be representative of the popular will, and yet may be undemocratic. ”

“ The second article of the Valerian-Horatian statute was to the effect that “whatever the plebs ordered in their tribal assembly [275] should be valid for the people”; [1671] so that henceforth plebiscites, when passed under the conditions hereafter specified, were the equivalent of leges, as they were often so called. ”

“ It introduced the ballot in elections with a view to freeing the voter from the influence of the nobility; for many of the poor were at this time falling into economic, and hence political, dependence on the rich. [2225] The other was the plebiscite of L. Cassius Longinus Ravilla, 137, for extending the use of the ballot to all trials before the people with the exception of perduellio. [2226] Cases coming under the law were those which involved fines imposed by the tribes under aedilician or tribunician presidency. ”

“ Article 5.- Sovereignty resides essentially in the Nation. Its exercise is carried out by the people through the plebiscite and periodic elections and, also, by the authorities established by this Constitution. No sector of the town or any individual can attribute its exercise.
The exercise of sovereignty recognizes as a limitation respect for the essential rights that emanate from human nature. It is the duty of the State organs to respect and promote such rights, guaranteed by this Constitution, as well as by the international treaties ratified by Chile and that are in force. ”

“ Those elections, however, were merely rigidly controlled plebiscites to get public endorsement of candidates already handpicked by the dictators. Dictators under pressure may at times agree to new elections, but then rig them to place civilian puppets in government offices. ”

“ The result of the election showed that when men are contending for liberty and the right to hold office their feelings are different from what they are when the contest is over and they can form an unbiased judgment. The people were satisfied now that votes were allowed for plebeians, and they elected none but patricians. Where in these days will you find in a single individual the moderation, fairness, and loftiness of mind which then characterised the people as a whole? ”

“ The frequent use of the plebiscit would certainly tend to diminish in the mind of political leaders the true sense of their responsibility. It would too often offer an easy way out of an awkward position without the consequence of having to give up power.
If I understand right the real meaning of the two words: plebiscit and referendum, the first would be used to try and ascertain how public opinion stands upon any given question of public policy, of proposed public legislation: the second would be employed for the ratification by the electorate of a law passed by Parliament. ”

“ As your representative, I take the opportunity to point out to the Hull Reform Association, and through it to every association of the same nature throughout the country, the insulting falsehood contained in asserting that you, or any other set of electors, have freedom of election. You are free to elect whom you please, under the understanding that he shall be mulcted in his personal property to any extent the adversaries may choose to effect by the expenditure of perhaps a much inferior sum of their own. ”