Romanian Const Court Deems Unconstitutional The Referendum - Elections Law

 

The court unanimously decided to rule the law unconstitutional, as the conditions regulating the organization and unfolding of a referendum – “the presidential, the parliamentary or the European Parliament elections cannot be held on the same day with the referendum, so as not to influence in any way the outcome of the referendum,” cannot be added to the constitutional provisions of article 90, according to which “the president of Romania can ask the people to express their will in a referendum on problems of national interest”.

Thus, according to the Constitution, there is no other condition that bans the organization of a referendum in parallel with, prior to or after the presidential, parliamentary, local or European Parliament elections.

The court deemed unconstitutional the Law amending article 5 of Law 3/2000 on the organization of the referendum, following the president's notification on the matter on October 31.

The law stated that a referendum cannot be organized in parallel with presidential, Parliament or European Parliament elections.
 
The law states that "in order to avoid influencing in any way the outcome of the referendum, presidential, Parliament or European Parliament elections cannot be held on the same date as the referendum."
 
Basescu said the provisions of the law violate the Constitution and fail to observe the Constitutional Court Decisions 567/2006, 147/2007 and 335/2007, through which it was set that any limitation of the President’s constitutional prerogatives, when it comes to using a referendum to consult the people, is unconstitutional.
 
"Moreover, through Decision no. 7 on November 7, 2007, on the challenge referring to the organization and unfolding of the national referendum on the introduction of the uninominal vote for Romanian Parliament elections at the same time with the European Parliament elections, the Constitutional Court stated that «Romania’s President alone has the right to decide what the matters of national interest are and, within these matters, to decide, by decree the issued submitted to referendum and the date for the unfolding of the referendum, as mentioned in the provisions of article 11 sections (1) and (2) and those of article 15 section (1) letter c) of Law no. 3/2000 on the organization and functioning of the referendum »," the President writes in the notice.
 
He added these provisions violate the texts of article 2, section 1 of the Constitution as they constrict the people’s right to exercise sovereignty "through its representative structures, created through free, periodic and fair elections, as well as through referendum."
 
The president said that in 2006, four deputies initiated a legislative proposal called “Draft law amending Law no. 3/2000 on the organization and unfolding of the referendum,” and on December 27, 2006, the Law voted by the Parliament was sent for promulgation.
 
The President’s notice said that on January 12, 2007, the President formulated a reexamination request for this law, because of the excessive and unjustifiable provisions included, given the fact that the criticized legal provisions prohibited the consultation of the people through a referendum, by the head of state, at the same time with the unfolding of presidential, Parliament or local elections, as well as elections for the European Parliament, or within six months from the dates of elections mentioned.
 
The Parliament reexamined the law, and enacted it on February 20, 2007, in a format almost identical to the initial one, adding, however, several new provisions compared to the initial format sent for promulgation, the President said. "On February 26, 2007, 71 lawmakers notified the Constitutional Court on the unconstitutionality of the law mentioned. Through Decision no. 355 on April 4, 2007, the Constitutional Court said «the Law amending Law no. 3/2000 on the organization and unfolding of the referendum is unconstitutional»," said the President’s document.
 
In the notice, Basescu said that on October 19, 2007, the Parliament sent another law for promulgation, called "Law amending article 5 of Law no.3/2000," another initiator and the following content: "To avoid influencing in any way the result of the referendum, presidential, Parliament or European Parliament elections cannot be held at the same date as the referendum." On November 6, 2007, the President sent to Parliament a request for the reexamination of the Law amending article 5 of Law no. 3/2000 on the organization and unfolding of the referendum. The request was rejected by the Parliament and the law was sent for promulgation on October 24, 2008.

 

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