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92-401: Most constitutions require that amendments cannot be enacted unless they have passed a special procedure that is more stringent than that required of ordinary legislation. Examples of such special procedures include supermajorities in the legislature, or direct approval by the electorate in a referendum , or even a combination of two or more different special procedures. A referendum to amend

184-704: A bill amending the Constitution must be passed by both houses of the Parliament of Australia by an absolute majority (at least 76 of the 151 members of the House of Representatives and at least 39 of the 76 members of the Senate ). If one house passes the bill while the other refuses, it may attempt to pass the bill again. If the second house again refuses to pass it, the Governor-General (presumably on

276-487: A desired amendment. For example, the movement to amend the Constitution to provide for the direct election of senators began to see such proposals regularly pass the House of Representatives only to die in the Senate from the early 1890s onward. As time went by, more and more state legislatures adopted resolutions demanding that a convention be called, thus pressuring the Senate to finally relent and approve what later became

368-527: A majority of states (i.e., 4 out of 6 states). Furthermore, in circumstances where a specific state is affected by a referendum, a majority of voters in that state must also agree to the change —referred to as a "triple majority". Article 142 of the Constitution of Bangladesh stipulates a bill in the Jatiya Sangsad must expressly state in its short title its purpose is to amend a provision of

460-508: A majority of states is also necessary). Switzerland has procedure similar to that of Australia. The special procedures for the amendment of some constitutions have proven to be so exacting, that of proposed amendments either few (eight Amendments out of 44 proposed in Australia), or none (as in Japan) have been passed over a period of several decades. In contrast, the former constitution of

552-447: A majority of voters. With the legislative method, a proposed amendment must be approved by an absolute supermajority of two-thirds of the membership of each house. With the convention method, the legislature may, by a two-thirds absolute supermajority, submit to the voters at a general election the question whether to call a convention to revise the Constitution. If the majority of the voters vote yes on that question, within six months

644-720: A mostly ceremonial president as head of state, and executive power vested in a Council of Ministers headed by a prime minister . The constitution expressly provides for a set of basic human rights ; Article 13 specifies that these rights and freedoms will be interpreted according to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights , the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights , and other international instruments adopted by Ethiopia. The document further guarantees that all Ethiopian languages will enjoy equal state recognition, although Amharic

736-619: A new legislative proposal would in some way add, alter or remove a part of the Finnish constitution, a bill requires a 2/3 majority in the Parliament of Finland . In other words, a legislative proposal that would modify, add or remove a part of the Finnish Constitution requires at least the approval of 134 out of 200 representatives in the Parliament of Finland Article 368 of the Indian Constitution requires

828-406: A political party. According to Article 130 of the Constitution of South Korea, amendments to the constitution must be passed by a two-thirds majority of legislators and then approved by voters at a referendum in order to become effective. The 1978 Constitution states that a three-fifths majority in both Congress of Deputies and Senate of Spain is needed to pass a constitutional reform, but if

920-699: A referendum. Amendments to the constitution require a two-thirds majority in both houses of the National Diet and a simple majority in a referendum. Section 268 of the Electoral Act sets out a number of 'reserved provisions'. These provisions include section 17(1) of the Constitution Act 1986 (regarding Parliament 's term length), section 35 of the Electoral Act (regarding the drawing of electoral boundaries), and section 74 of

1012-515: A simple majority of all the MPs present and voting. However, the ruling People's Action Party (PAP) has commanded a majority of more than two-thirds of the seats in Parliament since 1968. Thus, the more stringent amendment requirement has not imposed any major limitation on Parliament's ability to amend the Constitution. A three-fifths majority of legislators is required for a bill to be put to

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1104-581: A simple majority of the constitutional composition of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and then passed by a two-thirds majority of the constitutional composition of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine at the succeeding regular session of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. According to Article 156 of the Constitution of Ukraine, amendments to Chapter I — "General Principles," Chapter III — "Elections. Referendum", and Chapter XIII — "Introducing Amendments to

1196-440: A simple majority. Parliamentary procedure requires that any action that may alter the rights of a minority have a supermajority requirement. Robert's Rules of Order states: As a compromise between the rights of the individual and the rights of the assembly, the principle has been established that a two-thirds vote is required to adopt any motion that: (a) suspends or modifies a rule of order previously adopted; (b) prevents

1288-600: A special joint resolution of Congress that does not require the President to sign and that the President can not veto . The manner in which constitutional amendments are finally recorded takes two main forms. In most jurisdictions, amendments to a constitution take the form of revisions to the previous text. Thus, once an amendment has become law, portions of the original text may be deleted or new articles may be inserted among existing ones. The second, less common method,

1380-484: A supermajority of at least six of the nine provinces. If an amendment affects a specific province, it must also be approved by the legislature of the province concerned. Section 1, which defines South Africa as "one, sovereign, democratic state" and lists its founding values, is a specially entrenched clause and can only be amended by an absolute three-quarters supermajority in the National Assembly and six of

1472-565: A supermajority of two-thirds of members present and voting in each house of the Indian Parliament , subject to at least by a majority of the total membership of each House of Parliament, to amend the constitution. In addition, in matters affecting the states and judiciary, at least above half of all the states need to ratify the amendment. The President of Italy is elected by an electoral college consisting of both chambers of Parliament sitting in joint session with 58 electors from

1564-686: A supermajority rule was in the 100s BC in ancient Rome . Pope Alexander III introduced the use of supermajority rule for papal elections at the Third Lateran Council in 1179. In the Democratic Party of the United States, a rule requiring the determination of a presidential nominee required the votes of two-thirds of delegates to the Democratic National Convention was adopted at

1656-416: A three fifths majority (360 votes) to be put forward to a referendum and a two-thirds majority (400 votes) to be ratified directly. According to Article 155 of the Constitution of Ukraine , amendments to the constitution, except for Chapter I — "General Principles," Chapter III — "Elections. Referendum", and Chapter XIII — "Introducing Amendments to the Constitution of Ukraine", must be previously approved by

1748-525: A three-fifths majority of MPs to overturn a veto from the President of Poland . For the Montenegrin independence referendum held in 2006 the European Union envoy Miroslav Lajčák proposed independence if a 55% supermajority of votes are cast in favor with a minimum turnout of 50%. Such procedure, ultimately accepted by the government of Montenegro , was somewhat criticized as overriding

1840-590: A total of 352 by at least 15 member states were required for legislation to be adopted by qualified majority. From 1   July 2013, the pass condition translated into: Requirements to reach an absolute majority is a common feature of voting in the European Parliament (EP) where under the ordinary legislative procedure the EP is required to act by an absolute majority if it is to either amend or reject proposed legislation. According to Finnish Law , when

1932-702: A two-thirds majority is reached in the Congress of Deputies, an absolute majority of senators is enough to pass the proposal. Nevertheless, when a new Constitution is proposed or the proposal's goal is to reform the Preliminary Title, the Chapter on Fundamental Rights and Freedoms or the Title on the Crown, the supermajority becomes significantly harder: The first way has been used twice (1992 and 2011), but

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2024-511: A verified complaint or resolution of impeachment). Different amendment procedures apply to different parts of the Constitution. Most of the Articles of the Constitution may be amended by a bill enacted by Parliament if there is at least a supermajority of two-thirds of all elected MPs voting in favour of the bill during its Second and Third Readings in Parliament. This is in contrast to ordinary bills, which only need to be approved by at least

2116-472: A vote in the National Assembly in order to prevent the ruling party from passing laws without the support of opposition parties. However, if a bill does not achieve the required three-fifths majority at one session without also being rejected, it must then be voted on at the next session even if less than three-fifths of legislators agree to do so. Additionally, if the President vetoes a bill,

2208-482: Is for amendments to be appended to the end of the main text in the form of special articles of amendment , leaving the body of the original text intact. Although the wording of the original text is not altered, the doctrine of implied repeal applies. In other words, in the event of conflict, an article of amendment will usually take precedence over the provisions of the original text, or of an earlier amendment. Nonetheless, there may still be ambiguity whether an amendment

2300-493: Is intended to supersede or to supplement an existing article in the text. An article of amendment may, however, explicitly express itself as having the effect of repealing a specific existing article. The use of appended articles of amendment is most famous as a feature of the United States Constitution , but it is also the method of amendment in a number of other jurisdictions, such as Venezuela . Under

2392-465: Is required to override a presidential veto . A two-thirds vote of both chambers of Congress voting separately is required to designate the vice president as acting president in the event that a majority of the Cabinet certifies that the president is "unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office" but the president declares that no such inability exists. A two-thirds vote of either chamber

2484-416: Is required to suspend or expel a member from that chamber. Under the 1987 Constitution, "The Congress may, by a vote of two-thirds of all its Members, call a constitutional convention , or by a majority vote of all its Members, submit to the electorate the question of calling such a convention." A three-quarters vote of all the members of the Congress is required to propose an amendment to the Constitution;

2576-544: Is specified as the working language of the federal government. Ethiopia has a tradition of highly personal and strongly centralized government, a pattern the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (the former ruling government coalition) had followed despite constitutional limits on federal power. The first general election held after the adoption of the constitution was the 2000 election . There were three earlier written constitutions of Ethiopia ,

2668-420: Is taken. Changes to constitutions , especially those with entrenched clauses , commonly require supermajority support in a legislature . Parliamentary procedure requires that any action of a deliberative assembly that may alter the rights of a minority have a supermajority requirement, such as a two-thirds vote. In consensus democracy the supermajority rule is applied in most cases. The first known use of

2760-465: Is through the legislature, either in regular or special session. The governor may call a special session, and specify the agenda for the session. To become part of the constitution, proposed amendments must be approved by a majority of voters in a referendum. Texas has had six different constitutions and the current constitution, adopted in 1876, has been amended 474 times. A proposed amendment must be approved by an absolute supermajority of two-thirds of

2852-435: Is to embarrass the administration, to destroy the energy of government, and to substitute the pleasure, caprice or artifices of an insignificant, turbulent or corrupt junto, to the regular deliberations and decisions of a respectable majority." Hamilton also wrote that such a requirement would encourage "contemptible compromises of the public good". In Federalist 58, Madison wrote that supermajority requirements might help impede

Constitutional amendment - Misplaced Pages Continue

2944-781: The 1995 Constitution of Ethiopia , is the supreme law of Ethiopia . The constitution came into force on 21 August 1995 after it was drawn up by the Constituent Assembly that was elected in June 1994. It was adopted by the Transitional Government of Ethiopia on 8 December 1994 and came into force following the general election held in May–June 1995 . The constitution consists of 106 articles in 11 chapters. Articles I-VII contains general provisions on matters of nomenclature of state, territorial jurisdiction, and

3036-644: The Archivist of the United States , with the Archivist currently being responsible for certification under 1 U.S.C.   § 106b . The certification document usually contains a list of the States that ratified the Amendment. This certification is just used by the federal government to keep an official record and archive of the Amendment for its own purposes, and does not actually have any legal effect on

3128-617: The Constitution of Denmark states that if the government or parliament wants to cede parts of national sovereignty to an international body such as the European Union or the United Nations , it has to get a five-sixths majority in the Folketing (150 out of 179 seats). If there is only a simple majority, a referendum must be held on the subject. The Council of the European Union uses 'Qualified majority voting' for

3220-526: The Gazette . The Constitution of Brazil states various terms on how it can be amended. Article 60 lies within "Section VIII: The Legislative Process, Subsection 2: Amendments to the Constitution". The following is detailed therein: Constitutional amendments may be proposed by: §1°. The Constitution cannot be amended during a federal intervention, state of defence or stage of siege. §2°. A proposed amendment shall be debated and voted on in each Chamber of

3312-662: The Ombudsman needs a three-fifths majority to be appointed. Also, if a two-thirds majority votes against a law project, it must be proposed to the following session. Before the Additional Articles of the Constitution of the Republic of China in 2005, the constitution amendments need to be passed by the National Assembly . Since the Additional Articles ratified on June 7, 2005, the National Assembly

3404-530: The Seventeenth Amendment for fear that such a convention—if permitted to assemble—might stray to include issues above and beyond just the direct election of senators. To become an operative part of the Constitution, an amendment, whether proposed by Congress or a national constitutional convention, must be ratified by either: Congress has specified the state legislature ratification method for all but one amendment. The ratifying convention method

3496-597: The Tennessee State Constitution : through the legislature and by constitutional convention. Proposed amendments must be approved by a majority of voters in a referendum. With the legislative method, the Tennessee General Assembly passes a resolution calling for an amendment and stating its wording. This must pass in three separate readings on three separate days, with an absolute majority on all readings. It does not require

3588-502: The Washington State Constitution is through the legislature and can originate in either branch. The proposal must be approved by a two-thirds majority of the legislature. The proposed amendment is placed on the ballot at the next general election and must be approved by a majority of the voters. The procedure for amending the Constitution of Australia is detailed in section 128 of the Constitution . Firstly,

3680-520: The advice of the Prime Minister ) may still submit the proposed change for referendum. Following this, Australians then vote on the proposal. For a referendum to succeed both of the following must be achieved The double majority is a major factor in why since 1906 out of 44 referendums only 8 have been successful. In the Communist -ruled People's Republic of China , the Constitution of

3772-461: The country's 20 regions . In the first three rounds of voting, a candidate must get two-thirds of the votes to win, but from the fourth round onwards only an absolute majority is needed. Reforms to the Constitution need to achieve a supermajority of two-thirds of the votes both in the Chamber and in the Senate to avoid the possibility of being sent to popular vote in order to be confirmed through

Constitutional amendment - Misplaced Pages Continue

3864-500: The governor 's approval. It must then be published at least six months before the next legislative election in newspapers of wide and general circulation. (This is done by precedent but is not required by law.) After the election, the proposed amendment must go through the same procedure (absolute majority on three separate readings). Then it is put on the ballot as a referendum in the next gubernatorial election. To be ratified it must again achieve an absolute majority of those voting in

3956-517: The provincial legislatures , and, if it does not have to be passed by the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), submit it to the NCOP for debate. When the bill is introduced, the comments received must be tabled in the National Assembly, and in the NCOP when appropriate. All amendments must be passed by an absolute two-thirds supermajority in the National Assembly (the lower house ); as

4048-470: The 1919 German Weimar Constitution , the prevailing legal theory was that any law reaching the necessary supermajorities in both chambers of parliament was free to deviate from the terms of the constitution, without itself becoming part of the constitution. This very wide conception of "amendment" eased the rise of Adolf Hitler to power; it was consequently explicitly ruled out in the postwar 1949 constitution, which allows amendments only by explicitly changing

4140-440: The Amendment. State constitutions in the U.S. are amended on a regular basis. In 19 states, the state constitutions have been amended at least 100 times. Amendments are often necessary because of the length of state constitutions, which are, on average, three times longer than the federal constitution, and because state constitutions typically contain extensive detail. In addition, state constitutions are often easier to amend than

4232-776: The Article come from Article 39, which stated that States should be divided into geographical lines (river, lakes etc) or economic class (pastoralists, farmers etc) rather than ethnolinguistic implications. Some Ethiopian government officials confused the argument; for example Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed conflated the term "boundary" and "border". Article 40(3): "land is a common property of the Nations, Nationalities and Peoples of Ethiopia and shall not be subject to sale or to other means of exchange". Article 45: "the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia shall have

4324-517: The Assembly has 400 members this requires 267 members to vote for the amendment. Most amendments do not have to be considered by the NCOP (the upper house ). Amendments of the Bill of Rights , and amendments affecting the role of the NCOP, the "boundaries, powers, functions or institutions" of the provinces or provisions "dealing specifically with provincial matters" must also be passed by the NCOP with

4416-483: The Congress. The Indian constitution can be amended in 3 ways: Supermajorities A supermajority is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level of support which is greater than the threshold of one-half used for a simple majority . Supermajority rules in a democracy can help to prevent a majority from eroding fundamental rights of a minority, but can also hamper efforts to respond to problems and encourage corrupt compromises at times when action

4508-621: The Constitution immediately once it is ratified by three-fourths of the States. The Article usually goes into force at this time too, though it may self-impose a delay before that happens, as was the case of the Eighteenth Amendment . Every ratified Amendment has been certified or proclaimed by an official of the federal government, starting with the Secretary of State , then the Administrator of General Services , and now

4600-473: The Constitution of Ukraine" must be passed by a two-thirds majority of the constitutional composition of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and then approved by voters at a referendum in order to become effective. 1995 Constitution of Ethiopia The Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia ( Amharic : የኢትዮጵያ ፌዴራላዊ ዴሞክራሲያዊ ሪፐብሊክ ሕገ መንግሥት , romanized :  Ye-Ītyōṗṗyā Fēdēralawī Dēmokirasīyawī Rīpebilīk Ḥige Menigišit ), also known as

4692-416: The Constitution. Amendment proposals may be adopted and sent to the states for ratification by either: All 33 amendment proposals that have been sent to the states for ratification since the establishment of the Constitution have come into being via the Congress. State legislatures have however, at various times, used their power to apply for a national convention in order to pressure Congress into proposing

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4784-502: The Electoral Act (designating 18 as the minimum voting age). For a 'reserved provision' to be amended or repealed, a three-quarters majority is required in the House of Representatives or a majority is needed in a national referendum . Under the Constitution of Nigeria a two-thirds majority is required in the National Assembly to alter the Constitution, enact legislation in a few areas, or remove office holders from some positions, such as Speaker. Legislative override or impeachment of

4876-472: The Ethiopian flag; Articles VIII-XII describe sovereignty, the supremacy of the constitution, democratic rights, separation of state and religion, and accountability of the government. It provides for a federal government of nine ethnically based regions governed by a parliament divided into the House of Peoples' Representatives and the House of Federation . It provides for a parliamentary system, with

4968-494: The Legislature shall provide for the convention. Delegates to a constitutional convention shall be voters elected from districts as nearly equal in population as may be practicable. The constitution does not provide any rules for the operation of the constitutional convention. With the initiative method, an amendment is proposed by a petition signed by voters equal in number to 8% of the votes for all candidates for governor at

5060-604: The National Congress, in two rounds, and shall be considered approved if it obtains three-fifths of the votes of the respective members in both rounds. §3°. A Constitutional amendment shall be promulgated by the Executive Committees of the Chamber of Deputies and Federal Senate, taking the next sequential number. §4°. No proposed constitutional amendment shall be considered that is aimed at abolishing

5152-714: The People's Republic of China states how to be amended under Article 64 of "Chapter III: The Structure of the State". It says the following: Amendments to the Constitution are to be proposed by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress or by more than one-fifth of the deputies to the National People's Congress and adopted by a majority vote of more than two-thirds of all the deputies to

5244-462: The U.S. state of Alabama was amended 977 times between its adoption in 1901 and its replacement by the current constitution in 2022. There are a number of formal differences, from one jurisdiction to another, in the manner in which constitutional amendments are both originally drafted and written down once they become law. In some jurisdictions, such as Ireland, Estonia , and Australia, constitutional amendments originate as bills and become laws in

5336-498: The constitution may also be triggered in some jurisdictions by popular initiative . Australia and Ireland provide examples of constitutions requiring that all amendments are first passed by the legislature before being submitted to the people; in the case of Ireland, a simple majority of those voting at the electorate is all that is required, whereas a more complex set of criteria must be met in Australia (a majority of voters in

5428-438: The constitution's Articles 104 and 105 are almost unamendable since they require the total consensus of the federal regional states and two-thirds of each house of Parliament. In Ethiopia's federal experience, each regional state is equal and has the right to veto amendments to the aforementioned articles. The Constitution of South Africa can be amended by an Act of Parliament , but special procedures and requirements apply to

5520-627: The constitution's text. (referendum if on status of the Church) (referendum if demanded by 10% of either house of legislature) (referendum if demanded by 1/3 of legislature) The Constitution of Ethiopia can only be modified by a two-thirds majority of the country's regions , and a two-thirds majority of a joint session of the Federal Parliamentary Assembly in accordance with Article 105. The constitution's Chapter Three (describing both Human and democratic rights) and

5612-458: The constitution. Constitutional amendments require a two-thirds majority in the unicameral Jatiya Sangsad to become effective. In Canada, most constitutional amendments can be passed only if identical resolutions are adopted by the House of Commons, the Senate and two-thirds or more of the provincial legislative assemblies representing at least 50 percent of the national population. Article 20 of

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5704-500: The elected membership of each house of the legislature. It is submitted to the voters in an election specified by the legislature. The wording of an explanatory statement that will appear on the ballot must be approved by the Texas Attorney General and printed in newspapers. The full text of the amendment must be posted by all county clerks for 30 days before the election. The only method for proposing an amendment to

5796-481: The entire membership" would be 100.) Another type of supermajority is three-fifths (60 percent). This requirement could also be qualified to include the entire membership or to include those present. In 2006, the Constitution of Florida was amended to require a 60% majority to pass new constitutional amendments by popular vote. In Poland , the Sejm ( lower house of the bicameral parliament of Poland ) requires

5888-531: The executive at either the state or federal government level also requires a two-thirds majority of the corresponding legislative assembly. Under the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines , a two-thirds majority of both chambers of the Congress of the Philippines (the House of Representatives and the Senate ) meeting in joint session is required to declare war . A two-thirds majority of both chambers

5980-519: The federal constitution. Individual states differ in the difficulty of constitutional amendments. Some states allow for initiating the amendment process through the action of the state legislature or by popular initiative. There are three methods for proposing an amendment to the California State Constitution : by the legislature , by constitutional convention, or by voter initiative. A proposed amendment must be approved by

6072-622: The following: §5°. The subject of a defeated or prejudiced proposed Constitutional amendment may not be made the subject of another proposed amendment in the same legislative session. Article 60 is the only article prescribed under Subsection 2 of Section 8 in the Brazilian constitution. Article Five of the United States Constitution describes the process whereby the federal Constitution may be altered. Twenty-seven amendments have been added (appended as codicils ) to

6164-454: The form of acts of parliament. This may be the case notwithstanding the fact that a special procedure is required to bring an amendment into force. Thus, for example, in Ireland and Australia although amendments are drafted in the form of Acts of Parliament they cannot become law until they have been approved in a referendum. By contrast, in the United States a proposed amendment originates as

6256-410: The grassroot kebele level to national level, involving many experts for advice while drafting. It also organized symposiums and forums of which the main draft provisions were discussed and debated Ethiopians. One of interesting feature of the discussion was the discussion conducted by article by article. After the discussion, participants voted for or against to each provision of the constitution, compiled

6348-439: The gubernatorial election. With the convention method, the legislature can put on any ballot the question of whether to call a constitutional convention . It must be stated whether the convention is limited or unlimited—that is, whether it can only amend the current constitution or totally abolish it and write a new one. If limited, the call must state which provisions of the current constitution are to be subject to amendment, and

6440-422: The introduction of a question for consideration; (c) closes, limits, or extends the limits of debate; (d) closes nominations or the polls, or otherwise limits the freedom of nominating or voting; or (e) takes away membership. To pass an amendment to the Australian Constitution , a referendum is required and must achieve a " double majority ": a majority of those voting nationwide, as well as separate majorities in

6532-415: The last gubernatorial election. The proposed amendment is then submitted to the voters at a general or special election. There are two methods of proposing amendments to the New York Constitution . All proposed amendments must be approved by a majority of voters in a referendum. With the legislative method, an amendment proposal must be published for three months, then approved by an absolute majority of

6624-475: The majority of issues brought before the institution. However, for matters of extreme importance for individual member states, unanimous voting is implemented. An example of this is Article 7 of the Treaty on European Union , whereby a member state can have its rights suspended with the unanimous approval of all other member states. After the accession of Croatia, on 1   July 2013, at least 260 votes out of

6716-459: The members of Federation to use their respective flags and emblems, which was opposed by pro-unitary groups. Few individuals opened debates through media about the flag and emblems of Ethiopia and gave guidance for the government. Article 47 of the constitution lists the members states of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and enshrines the right of Nations, Nationalities and Peoples to establish their own States. Opponents objected about

6808-456: The members of each of the two houses, and approved again in a succeeding term of the houses, with an election intervening. Finally, the amendment proposal must be submitted to the people, and for ratification must be approved by a simple majority. With the convention method, a constitutional convention must be convened by a majority vote of voters in a general election (referendum) on the question. There are two methods for proposing amendments to

6900-497: The middle and red at the bottom, and shall have a national emblem at the center". Accordingly, the Flag and Emblem Proclamation No. 16/1996, Proclamation No. 48/1996 (Amendment) and Flag Proclamation No. 654/2009 enacted. Opponent of Article 3 defined different logo of the flag and subsequent laws by rejecting it. The Ethiopian government also failed to enforce its own constitutional laws in this regard. Article 3(3) authorized over

6992-461: The number of votes in favor being at least twice the number of votes against. Abstentions and absences are excluded in calculating a two-thirds vote. The two-thirds requirement can be qualified to include the entire membership of a body instead of only those present and voting, but such a requirement must be explicitly stated (such as "two-thirds of those members duly elected and sworn"). In this case, abstentions and absences count as votes against

7084-664: The party's first presidential nominating convention in 1832 . The two-thirds rule gave southern Democrats a de facto veto over any presidential nominee after the Civil War, which lasted until the rule was abolished in 1936 . In the Federalist Papers , Alexander Hamilton and James Madison were critical of supermajority requirements. In Federalist 22, Hamilton wrote that while preventing harmful legislation from being passed, such requirements also prevented beneficial legislation from being passed, and "its real operation

7176-445: The passage of "hasty and partial measures", but "[i]n all cases where justice or the general good might require new laws to be passed, or active measures to be pursued, the fundamental principle of free government would be reversed. It would be no longer the majority that would rule; the power would be transferred to the minority." Madison also wrote that such requirements would encourage secession . A majority vote , or more than half

7268-421: The passage of constitutional amendments. A bill amending the Constitution must be introduced in the National Assembly , and cannot contain any provisions other than constitutional amendments and directly related matters. At least 30 days before a constitutional amendment bill is introduced in the National Assembly, the person or committee introducing the amendment must publish it for public comment, submit it to

7360-643: The preceding one being the 1987 Constitution . The 1995 constitution has been subjected to constitutional crisis with involvement of few cliques to run their own agenda. Some critics claim that the constitution was drafted by the TPLF / EPRDF coalition in closed door and enacted overnight. The Constitutional Commission of the Transitional Government of Ethiopia (TGE) had worked with Regional Affairs Coordination Department for two years (1993 and 1994). The constitution organized public discussion from

7452-404: The proposal. Alternatively, the voting requirement could be specified as "two-thirds of those present", which has the effect of counting abstentions but not absences as votes against the proposal. For example, if an organization has 150 members and at a meeting 30 members are present with 25 votes cast, a "two-thirds vote" would be 17. ("Two-thirds of those present" would be 20, and "two-thirds of

7544-401: The proposed amendment is submitted to the people for ratification (by a majority of the votes cast) in a plebiscite . A two-thirds majority of the Senate is required to ratify treaties, and to remove an impeached official from office. Impeachment by the House, which is the required first step in the removal process, only requires one-third of Representatives to sign a petition (specifically

7636-484: The provinces in the NCOP. Once an Act is passed by the National Assembly, and by the NCOP if necessary, it must be signed and assented to by the President . As with any other Act of Parliament, by default an amendment comes into effect when it is published in the Government Gazette , but the text of the amendment may specify some other date of commencement, or allow the President to specify one by notice in

7728-462: The results at kebele , district , zone , region or national level. It deals with the rights of the nations, nationalities, and peoples of Ethiopia, including the provision that "Every Nation, Nationality and People in Ethiopia has an unconditional right to self-determination, including the right to secession". Article 3(1) says "The Ethiopian flag shall consist of green at the top, yellow in

7820-509: The second has never been used. The Spanish Constitution states other supermajorities: Each Spanish autonomous community has its own Statute of Autonomy , working like a local constitution that is subject to the 1978 Constitution and national powers. The Statute of Autonomy of the Canary Islands states that its economic and fiscal regime and electoral law need a two-thirds majority of the Parliament to be modified. On its behalf,

7912-511: The state legislatures' or state ratifying conventions' consideration of proposed amendments. In Dillon v. Gloss (1921), the Supreme Court affirmed that Congress—if it so desires—could provide a deadline for ratification. An amendment with an attached deadline that is not ratified by the required number of states within the set time period is considered inoperative and rendered moot . A proposed amendment becomes an official Article of

8004-487: The subsequent convention, if approved, is limited to considering only amendments to the provisions specified in the call. The proposed amendments must then be submitted to the electorate and approved by a majority of those voting in the election. A constitutional convention cannot be held more frequently than once every six years. The only method for proposing an amendment to the Texas State Constitution

8096-479: The traditional practice of requiring a two-thirds supermajority, as practiced in all former Yugoslav countries before (including the previous referendum in Montenegro ). The requirement for 50% turnout has also been criticized for causing no-show paradoxes . In 2016, the Constitution of Colorado was amended to require a 55% majority to pass new constitutional amendments by popular vote. It had previously been

8188-507: The veto can be overridden by a two-thirds majority of legislators. According to Article 65 of the Constitution of South Korea , impeachment of the President requires a two-third majority of legislators to be effective. According to Article 113 of the Constitution of South Korea, the Constitutional Court requires a two-thirds majority of its judges to issue rulings nullifying laws, removing impeached officials or dissolving

8280-402: The votes cast, is a common voting basis . Instead of the basis of a majority, a supermajority can be specified using any fraction or percentage which is greater than one-half. Common supermajorities include three-fifths (60%), two-thirds (66.666...%), and three-quarters (75%). A two-thirds vote, when unqualified, means two-thirds or more of the votes cast. This voting basis is equivalent to

8372-474: Was abolished. Amendments of the constitution need to be proposed by more than one-quarter of members of the Legislative Yuan, passed by three-quarters of those present in the meeting, the presence of which must surpass three-quarters of all members of Legislative Yuan, then followed by approval by more than half (50%) of all eligible voters in referendums . In Turkey, constitutional amendments need

8464-481: Was used for the Twenty-first Amendment , which became part of the Constitution in 1933. Since the turn of the 20th century, amendment proposals sent to the states for ratification have generally contained a seven-year ratification deadline, either in the body of the amendment or in the resolving clause of the joint resolution proposing it. The Constitution does not expressly provide for a deadline on

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