Leylandiistani constitutional referendum, 2014

Constitution of Leylandiistan Referendum

21-23 February 2014
Option	Constitution of Leylandiistan	"Yes"	"No"
Voter Turnout (%)	73%	93%	7%
Count	14 votes	13	1

The 2014 Constitutional Referendum was a referendum that took place in the Democratic Republic of Leylandiistan between Friday the 21st of February, 2014, and Sunday the 23rd of February. The Constitution was approved by the vast majority of voters.

Background

In April 2013, the Consuls of Leylandiistan wrote a constitution for Leylandiistan. However, it did not seem suitable as a constitution, and in the end it was never ratified or officially approved. For the next year or so, Leylandiistan lacked a constitution or any kind of similar document. From December 2013, the government tried to build up individual acts of legislation in the National Assembly that would act as a kind of Constitution. However, after it took a great deal of time to pass any one bill (normally, it took a week or two to debate and vote on a bill), the Executive Council realised that this was simply not an efficient form of government. President Ó Cathail began reviewing micronational and macronational constitutions. Soon, the whole Executive Council collaborated and finished a draft constitution by the middle of February, 2014. A referendum was scheduled for Friday the 21st of February. The Executive Council organised the referendum. By Sunday, the polling station was closed, and the results were circulated among citizens. The Constitution was approved by the majority of Leylandiistan's citizens, and it took effect as Leylandiistan's fundamental law and guiding document.

Changes

The Constitution changed Leylandiistan in many ways, which can be summarised in the following points:

• External citizenship will be abolished. This means that only territorial residents and diplomatic staff can be citizens of Leylandiistan. All citizens will now have three months to reapply for citizenship, and their applications will be accepted or refused in accordance with the Constitution. Until then, all current citizens will continue to be regarded as citizens.
• Territories with a permanent population will now be referred to as "Autonomous Republics". This is because each territory will now have their own Regional Council. The Regional Council will act as a regional legislature, semi-independent from the central government. Every citizen will sit on their respective Regional Council. Territories with no permanent population will continue to be referred to as territories.
• The National Assembly will be an assembly of representatives from each Autonomous Republic. Each Regional Council will elect one of its members to represent it in the National Assembly. The President and Vice President will continue to be elected through national elections. Previously, National Assembly Members were not elected by a constituency, instead the entire country elected seven representatives including the executive branch.
• There will be no Supreme Court. Instead, each Autonomous Republic will have its own elected District Court, and there will be a national High Court. High Court appeals will be heard by a Special Council, appointed by the Executive Branch.
• The Executive Council will be renamed the Executive Branch. However, its duties will remain the same.

The Constitution can only be amended through a referendum.

Statistics

Turnout was 73%, which was slightly lower than the turnout for the General Election of 2013. This means that 14 out of 19 citizens voted. 93% were in favour of the Constitution, with 7% against. This means 13 voted yes, and 1 voted no. Because 13 out of 19 citizens voted yes, the Constitution was supported by a majority of the total number of citizens (68% of citizens).