The Law and History of State and Territory Referendums

Abstract

Australia’s states and territories have together held more than 50 referendums since Federation in 1901. And yet, as the literature on federal referendums has continued to grow, scholars have largely overlooked the rich history of direct democracy at the sub-national level. This article addresses this gap by providing the first comprehensive review of the use and regulation of referendums by the states and two mainland territories. It draws attention to the immense variety of referendum votes on constitutional amendments and contentious policy issues. It also examines rules and practices on a range of matters, including initiation, the form of the question, the status of the result, voting and campaigning. Additionally, the article surveys the overall state and territory referendum record, including the frequency and approval rate of referendums, and compares it to the federal record. The analysis is informed by a referendum dataset compiled from primary sources by the author. The Appendix, which draws on this dataset, presents the first, single repository of accurate information on state and territory referendums, including dates, topics, results, informality and turnout.