A constituent assembly (also known as a constitutional convention , constitutional congress , or constitutional assembly ) is a body assembled for the purpose of drafting or revising a constitution . Members of a constituent assembly may be elected by popular vote , drawn by sortition , appointed, or some combination of these methods. Assemblies are typically considered distinct from a regular legislature , although members of the legislature may compose a significant number or all of its members. As the fundamental document constituting a state, a constitution cannot normally be modified or amended by the state's normal legislative procedures in some jurisdictions; instead a constitutional convention or a constituent assembly, the rules for which are normally laid down in the constitution, must be set up. A constituent assembly is usually set up for its specific purpose, which it carries out in a relatively short time, after which the assembly is dissolved. A constituent assembly is a form of representative democracy .
54-520: The California Constitutional Conventions were two separate constitutional conventions that took place in California during the nineteenth century which led to the creation of the modern Constitution of California . The first, known as the 1849 Constitutional Convention of Monterey , held in September and October 1849 in advance of California attaining U.S. statehood the following year, adopted
108-675: A National Constituent Assembly ( Assemblée nationale constituante ) was formed when representatives assembled at the only location available – a tennis court – and swore the Tennis Court Oath on June 20, 1789, promising that they would not adjourn until they had drafted a new constitution for France. Louis XVI recognized the validity of the National Constituent Assembly on June 27, 1789. See also 1848 French Constituent Assembly election . Parlamentarischer Rat (Parliamentary Council) (1948) – Drafted
162-467: A bankruptcy court under its authority. There is also a United States Attorney in each district, who acts as the federal government's lawyer in the district, both prosecuting federal criminal cases and defending the government (and its employees) in civil suits against them; the U.S. Attorney is not employed by the judicial branch but by the Department of Justice , part of the executive branch. There
216-521: A "future" constitution of Israel, as well as "regular" statutory legislation. United States federal judicial districts In the U.S. federal judicial system , the United States is divided into 94 judicial districts . Each state has at least one judicial district, as do the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Each judicial district contains a United States district court with
270-537: A Citizens' Limited Constitutional Convention , when read together would have amended the mechanism of calling a constitutional convention. Specifically the Citizens' Constitutional Convention Act "shall specify a fair method for selecting or electing citizens to be delegates to a constitutional convention". The Call for a Citizens' Limited Constitutional Convention would have three types of delegates: Assembly district, County, and Tribal. There would be 240 delegates from
324-578: A Constituent Congress was formed with the participation of the States and it enacted the 1824 Constitution . Many disputes aroused between federalists and centralists, which resulted in political instability and in 1836 the Siete Leyes (Seven Laws) were enacted. The Siete Leyes dissolved the federation and created a unitary republic, but that ended in 1846 when the Constitutive and Reforms Act
378-592: A convention to revise the Constitution. If the majority vote yes on that question, within 6 months 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." (ARTICLE XVIII AMENDING AND REVISING THE CONSTITUTION SEC. 2) Two proposition petitions circulating in 2010, 09-0066 Citizens' Constitutional Convention Act and 09-0067 The Call for
432-495: A full year to finalize (March 1878 to March 1879) and has been described as "the perfect example of what a constitution ought not to be". Multiple calls for a third state constitutional convention have been raised during the past quarter-century, but none has thus far gained widespread political momentum . The Monterey Convention of 1849 was the first California Constitutional Convention to take place. Bvt. Brig. Gen. Bennett C. Riley , ex officio Governor of California, issued
486-401: A new constitution and passed it unanimously with 25 votes and no abstentions. On 20 October 2012 the parliament put the bill to a national referendum, in which 67% of the voters supported the bill. Further, 67% of the voters supported equal voting rights (one person, one vote) and 83% supported national ownership of natural resources, two key provisions of the bill. Parliament has failed to ratify
540-470: A new constitution for Sri Lanka . Constituent Assembly of Turkey was established in 1961 after the 1960 Turkish coup d'état to prepare a democratic constitution . The constitution was prepared and approved by the voters in a referendum of 1961. The U.S. Constitutional Convention drafted the still-current United States Constitution in 1787. Its delegates were appointed by the states, not directly elected, and not all states sent delegates; moreover,
594-452: A proclamation on June 3, 1849 calling for a convention and a special election on August 1 where delegates to the convention would be elected. The memorial presenting the proposed constitution to Congress claimed it banned slavery not because of anti-slavery sentiment, but just unanimous agreement (including convention delegates originally from slave states ) that California's climate and soil were not suitable for slave labor. It also described
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#1732764879105648-695: A situation that led to the dissolution of Congress by Iturbide on October 31, 1822, without a formal Constitution being enacted. After the dissolution of Congress, Iturbide created the National Instituent Junta , which enacted the Provisional Political Bylaws of the Mexican Empire on December 18, 1822. The dissolution of Congress had resulted in an armed revolution under the Plan de Casa Mata , which called for
702-616: Is also a Federal Public Defender who represents people charged with federal crimes who cannot afford to hire their own lawyers; some FPDs cover more than one judicial district. Each district also has a United States Marshal who serves the court system. Three territories of the United States — the Virgin Islands , Guam , and the Northern Mariana Islands — have district courts that hear federal cases, including bankruptcy cases. The breakdown of what
756-642: Is granted 12 months to draft a new constitution, which has to be ratified by referendum once written, with compulsory voting . Immediately after the 1948 Costa Rican Civil War that overthrew the Rafael Angel Calderón Government, the leaders of the victorious side called for the election of a Constituent Assembly in the same year. The Assembly successfully drafted and approved the current Costa Rican Constitution. The Danish Constituent Assembly ( Danish : Den Grundlovgivende Rigsforsamling ; lit. The Constitution giving Assembly of
810-536: Is in each judicial district is codified in 28 U.S.C. §§ 81 – 131 . Federal judicial districts have also been established in the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico . Courts in other insular areas are territorial courts under Article I of the Constitution , not United States district courts , although they have similar jurisdiction. Only two districts have jurisdiction over areas outside
864-698: Is known as Constitution Day in Denmark. The European Convention (2001) drafted the Constitution for Europe for approval by the European Council and ratification by the member states . This constitution was abandoned after being rejected in French and Dutch referendums , and was replaced by the Treaty of Lisbon in 2007. During the French Revolution (from July 1789 to September 1791)
918-721: The Basic Law of the Federal Republic for ratification by the Länder . This council was not recognized as legitimate by Soviet-occupied East Germany , which drafted its own constitution in 1949 and would not accept the Basic Law until German reunification in 1990. On 27 November 2010, Iceland held an election for a constitutional assembly , with 522 people competing for 25 delegate seats. The assembly, in session for four months from early April until late July 2011, drafted
972-841: The Polish-Russian War of 1792 and the Third Partition of Poland . The Philippines has had several conventions: The Russian Constituent Assembly was established in Russia in the wake of the October Revolution of 1917 to form a new constitution after the overthrow of the Russian Provisional Government . The Sri Lankan Parliament approved the creation of a Sri Lanka Constitutional Assembly on March 9, 2016, proposed by Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe . The assembly will draft
1026-622: The United Kingdom , New Zealand and Israel are examples. In these countries there is no need to call constituent assemblies, and no provision to do so, as the legislature can effectively modify the constitution. Although it lacks a written constitution, the United Kingdom has had several conventions at the subnational level including: The constitution of New Zealand consists of a collection of statutes (Acts of Parliament), Treaties, Orders-in-Council, Letters Patent, decisions of
1080-482: The interim government of Bangladesh is mulling over convening a new constituent assembly to draft a new inclusive democratic constitution, ensuring the inviolability of human dignity. As of May 2021 Chile is the most recently elected constitutional assembly. The 155 members of this assembly were elected between 15 and 16 May 2021 . The assembly has gender parity (50% females and 50% males) and has 17 seats reserved for people belonging to indigenous peoples. The assembly
1134-451: The spectrum , we may imagine a sovereign lawgiver laying down the constitution for all later generations. At the democratic extreme , we may imagine a constituent assembly elected by universal suffrage for the sole task of writing a new constitution. And there are all sorts of intermediate arrangements." Australia held four constitutional conventions, one each in 1891, 1897, 1973, and 1998 . The Constituent Assembly of Bangladesh
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#17327648791051188-521: The Assembly districts: three delegates elected by, and among, a randomly selected pool of 50 eligible persons from each Assembly district. There would be one County delegate for every whole fraction of 175,000 persons residing in each County, provided that there would be at least one County delegate for each County. According to the 2010 census, there would have been 217 County delegates. One delegate would be selected by federally recognized tribes in each of
1242-599: The Congress enacted the Constitutional Decree for the Liberty of Mexican America ( Decreto Constitucional para la Libertad de la América Mexicana ), known as the Constitution of Apatzingán . The 1814 Constitution entered into force in the territories dominated by the insurgents, but as the war continued and the first insurgent leaders (like Morelos) were defeated, it was largely forgotten. After independence
1296-529: The Constituent Assembly started functioning as India's Parliament. Dr.B. R. Ambedkar drafted the Constitution of India in conjunction with the requisite deliberations and debates in the Constituent Assembly. The Assembly approved the Constitution on November 26, 1949 (celebrated as Constitution Day ), and it took effect on January 26, 1950 — a day now commemorated as Republic Day in India. Once
1350-627: The Constitution took effect, the Constituent Assembly became the Provisional Parliament of India. The Constitutional Assembly of Indonesia was established to draw up a permanent constitution. Its membership was elected in November 1955, and it met for the first time in November 1956. After four sessions, it failed to agree on the fundamental basis for the state. It was dissolved in 1959, and the original constitution imposed by presidential decree.(OTP) The Constituent Assembly of Italy
1404-565: The Courts and unwritten constitutional conventions. Because it is not supreme law, the constitution is comparatively easy to reform, requiring only a majority of Members of Parliament to amend it. The constitutional law of Israel is determined by the Knesset which, since 1949, serves as the country's ongoing constituent assembly. The Knesset has the power to create Basic Laws of Israel , laws which are entrenched legislation and will become part of
1458-693: The Realm ) of 1848 established the Constitution of Denmark in 1849 ( Danish : Danmarks Riges Grundlov ; lit. The Constitutional Act of the Realm of Denmark ) and formalized the transition from absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy . The assembly consisted of members of which 114 were directly elected in October 1848, 38 were appointed by the king and the rest were government ministers. The constituent assembly met at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen and first met on 23 October 1848. The assembly
1512-501: The bill, however, inviting accusations that the political class is trying to thwart the will of the people by disrespecting the result of the 2012 constitutional referendum. In Ireland , the government elected in March 2011 has committed to establishing constitutional amendments on six specified issues and others it may consider; the government has separately promised amendments on five other issues. The Constituent Assembly of India
1566-761: The church and Mexican conservatives, and the Plan de Tacubaya called for its derogation. This events led to the Reform War , which the liberals won, then restoring the 1857 Constitution and adding to it the Reform Laws . After the Porfiriato , and whilst the Mexican Revolution was still being fought, President Venustiano Carranza formed a Constituent Congress, which met in Querétaro and enacted
1620-423: The constituent assembly creates a constitution through "internally imposed" actions, in that members of the constituent assembly are themselves citizens, but not necessarily the political leaders, of the country for which they are creating a constitution. As described by Columbia University Social Sciences Professor Jon Elster : "Constitutions arise in a number of different ways. At the non-democratic extreme of
1674-407: The controversies and opposition, Sheikh Mujib's uncompromising leadership enabled the Constituent Assembly to draft and enact the Constitution in less than a year. However, from the time of its drafting until today, the constitution has been often labelled as "fascist" and criticized for fostering autocracy and failing to adequately safeguard human rights. In the aftermath of 2024 mass uprising ,
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1728-520: The convention was originally charged with drafting amendments to the Articles of Confederation rather than a new constitution. The US Constitution contains no provision for its own replacement (and because of the presence of entrenched clauses it cannot be revoked through an amendment). Article V of the Constitution does permit Congress to appoint a national constitutional convention to propose amendments but it has never done so. While Congress has
1782-674: The establishment of a Federal Republic and for the restoration of the Constituent Congress. Iturbide was forced to abdicate and he reinstalled the Constituent Congress. The Congress then created a provisional government, called the Triumvirate , and enacted the Constituent Act of the Mexican Federation, by which the former Provinces of Mexico were transformed into free and sovereign States. After this,
1836-525: The existing American constitutions, so that the constituent's assembly could draw upon the latest in constitutional design. The powers of these state constituent assemblies were also highly contested, with some claiming that they had unlimited legal power and others claiming that they must operate within the pre-existing legal landscape. In the end, a common law of constituent power emerged which held that elected constituent assemblies had limited powers. Several U.S. states have held multiple conventions over
1890-520: The formation of the Federal Constitution in 1787 as well as after its ratification. Since 1776 nearly 150 state constitutional conventions have met to draft or revise state constitutions. These early state constitutional conventions frequently did not use procedural steps like popular ratification that became commonplace in the mid-19th century. Yet they were considered to be constituent assemblies that exercised their authority as that of
1944-420: The four federal judicial districts of California. This plan would have provided total of 461 delegates, each having one vote. 231 would have been required to propose amendments to the electorate, but broad consensus would have been highly encouraged. Constitutional convention (political meeting) Unlike forms of constitution-making in which a constitution is unilaterally imposed by a sovereign lawmaker,
1998-476: The four Congressional district elected 8 delegates. The new California Constitution produced by the Convention was voted for on May 7, 1879, and adopted by a vote of 77,959 to 67,134. Present language in the Constitution of California : "The Legislature by rollcall vote entered in the journal, two-thirds of the membership of each house concurring, may submit at a general election the question whether to call
2052-479: The option to submit both its own proposals for amendments and those of a national convention to state conventions rather than the state legislatures for ratification; this process has been used only once (for the Twenty-first Amendment ). A long tradition in the use of constituent assemblies exists at the state level of Constitutionalism . In fact, constituent assemblies met in the states before
2106-520: The original 1849 constitution. It took place in Sacramento, California from March 1878 to March 1879. The Convention was composed of 152 delegates. A series of districts were apportioned 88 delegates. Some of the districts were composed of a single county, some composed of several counties, and others operated as floterial districts . The electorate of the State at-large elected 32 delegates. Each of
2160-458: The people. As American Sovereigns: The People and America's Constitutional Tradition Before the Civil War by Christian G. Fritz notes:. "A legitimate constitution depended on whether the sovereign people authorized it, not whether a particular procedure was used or whether revolutionary conventions were free of other responsibilities, such as passing ordinary legislation. It was the people as
2214-721: The proposed eastern boundary as a compromise between those who wished to include all of former Mexican Alta California (including today's Nevada, Utah, and Arizona) and a committee-proposed eastern boundary at 116° (including the western half of Nevada but excluding the Lower Colorado River Valley and Imperial Valley ), and denied having considered north–south division at the Missouri Compromise Line (south of Carmel and Fresno ), saying Southern Californians had no interest in division. The Sacramento Convention of 1878–79 amended and ratified
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2268-673: The sovereign who authorized drafting those first [state] constitutions that gave them their legitimacy, not whether they used procedures that matched what was later understood to be necessary to create fundamental law." American state constituent assemblies in the 19th and 20th centuries reflected many qualities of a citizen's movement. From the start of state American constitution-making, delegates to constitutional conventions studied earlier state models of constitutions. They often self-consciously "borrow[ed]" constitutional text and provisions from other states. They often used in their drafting and debates compact and pocket-sized compilations of all
2322-427: The state's original constitution. This document maintains jurisdiction along with the current constitution which was ratified on May 7, 1879, following the 1879 Constitutional Convention of Sacramento . Article 3 Section 2 of the current Constitution references the original boundaries as stated in the 1849 Constitution at Article 12. The result of Progressive mistrust of elected officials, this later constitution took
2376-496: The still-current Political Constitution of the United Mexican States of 1917. Nepal had two Constituent assemblies , the last one being elected after its predecessor failed to deliver a constitution, despite multiple extensions. It also served as the country's parliament. Finally Nepal had made constitution with 89% majority. Nepal has adopted Federalism since. The Great Sejm (also known as Four-Year Sejm )
2430-588: The years to change their particular state's constitutions . All 50 states have had at least one Constitutional Convention, numbering over 233. 11 were illegal and defeated by arms (Confederacy and Dorr's Rebellion). 12 were illegal and won through arms (Revolutionary War, Republic of Texas, and Vermont Republic). 37 were made in accordance with a Federal enabling law. State legislatures put restrictions on conventions that were not followed in these cases. A few countries do not have an entrenched constitution , which can thus be amended by normal legislative procedures;
2484-621: Was consummated on September 27, 1821, and based on the Plan de Iguala and the Treaty of Córdoba , the Provisional Governing Junta was stablished. The Junta proclaimed the Act of Independence of the Mexican Empire and acted as a de facto legislative assembly until February 24, 1822, when the Constituent Congress was gathered. On May 19, 1822, the Constituent Congress proclaimed Agustín de Iturbide as Emperor. The relations between Emperor and Congress were always problematic,
2538-514: Was dissolved on 31 January 1948, to be replaced by the new Parliament of Italy . The Viceroyalty of New Spain sent deputies to the Cortes of Cadiz , which enacted the 1812 Constitution . By the time this Constitution was enacted, an insurgency fighting for independence from Spain was already established. The first Constituent Congress of independent Mexico, known as the Congress of Anahuac ,
2592-803: Was elected to write the Constitution of India , and served as its first Parliament as an independent nation. It was set up as a result of negotiations between the leaders of the Indian independence movement and members of the British Cabinet Mission . The constituent assembly was elected indirectly by the members of the Provincial legislative assembly, which existed under the British Raj . It first met on December 9, 1946, in Delhi . On August 15, 1947, India became an independent nation, and
2646-408: Was enacted and the 1824 Constitution, and thus the federation, was restored. On October 16, 1854, President Juan Álvarez , under the Plan de Ayutla , decreed the formation of another Constituent Congress, which met in 1856. During the presidency of Ignacio Comonfort , the Constituent Congress enacted the 1857 Constitution , which was liberal in character. The Constitution was not well received by
2700-405: Was established in 1946 in the wake of Fascist Italy 's defeat during World War II. It was elected with universal suffrage, simultaneously with a referendum about the adoption of Republic or the continuation of monarchy. Voters chose Republic, and the new assembly had the task to approve the new republic governments, as well as to write a new constitution. This was approved on 22 December 1947. It
2754-602: Was first gathered in Chilpancingo whilst the war of independence was still ongoing. During the opening of Congress, José María Morelos outlined its program in a document called Sentimientos de la Nación (Feelings of the Nation), which was the first antecedent of the various Constitutions of Mexico. Being persecuted by royalist troops, the Congress fled Chilpancingo and gathered in Apatzingán . On October 22, 1814,
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#17327648791052808-473: Was held between 1788 and 1792. Its principal aim became to restore sovereignty to, and reform, the federative Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth politically and economically. These attempts were made by writing Constitution of 3 May 1791 that was designed to redress long-standing political defects of the Commonwealth and its system of Golden Liberties . The constitution lasted for merely a year because of
2862-641: Was overall split in three different groupings: the National liberals , the Friends of Peasants, and the Conservatives . A key topic for discussion was the political system, and the rules governing elections. On 25 May 1849, the constituent assembly approved the new constitution, and on 5 June 1849 it was signed by King Frederick VII . For this reason, it is also known as the June constitution . Today, 5 June
2916-805: Was the first and, to date, the only constitution-making body of Bangladesh, convened in 1972 by the government of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman following the country's independence. It comprised representatives elected in the national and provincial council elections of Pakistan held in 1970. As the assembly was formed with representatives elected under the Legal Framework Order, 1970 , issued by Pakistan's then-military ruler and President Yahya Khan , several political parties and political leaders, including Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani , Badruddin Umar , A.S.M. Abdur Rab , Farhad Mazhar , and others, have labeled this assembly as illegitimate. However, despite
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