The second public discussion of the draft law on local referendums was held by the All-Ukrainian initiative “Active Community” and the partners (USAID, Canada, NDI, IFES, PACT, Reanimation Package of Reforms, “Opora”). The deputies, specialists and activists gathered via Zoom to discuss the local referendums management.










The public discussion are designed to facilitate inclusive communication concerning local referendums in Ukraine between authorities, specialists, and citizens. Our task was to bring the citizens’ attention to the draft law and to receive feedback. During the second section the participants were divided into groups and had a chance to discuss the draft law in-depth and to come up with suggestions.





The participants could share their associations connected to local referendum on “Vasha Dumka” Platform.





Turned out, the dominant associations were “democracy” and “expression of will”.





Therefore, what does the topic “administration” discussed by participants imply? It is the way the local self-government bodies organize the referendum. An important role is played here by the local referendum commissions.





What are the authorities of the Central Election Commission (CEC) of Ukraine?





  • the Commission verifies the lawfulness of the issue put to the vote. It is worth mentioning, that the CEC decision can be challenged in county administrative court.
  • approves all kinds of referendum documents.





Territorial Election Commissions (TEC) are responsible for the administration of local referendums.





The draft law attempts to balance out the teams of Precinct Commissions (PC) by supporters and opponents of the issue put to vote in referendum. The quota in the Precinct Commission is allotted to the representatives of the group that initiated the referendum.





CEC and TEC are also responsible for the information support of local referendums: the info on the referendum progress and results are to be published on the Commissions’ websites, if any.





In addition to Commissions, the media also inform the citizens about the referendum. There are legal requirements as to the statements: the information has to be balanced and fair, the news items cannot be in form of campaigning. The draft law clearly differentiates between informing and campaigning.





Who is responsible for compiling the register of voters? It is the responsibility of the State Register bodies.

























The following issues were discussed during the second part, where the participants were divided into small groups:





  • Is it necessary to limit the campaigning?





Some discussion participants said ‘yes’, some responded ‘no’. A suggestion was made to regulate the advertising format and locations.





  • How should the Precinct Commissions be formed?





The participants think it is necessary to provide training and to certify the Precinct Commissions’ members. In the long run, the Precinct Commissions should be professionalized.





  • How to verify the lawfulness of the issue put to the vote?





The participants were divided on this issue. Some think, it should be the authority of TEC, some emphasize the key role of CEC in this process. The other alternatives mentioned were Prosecutor’s Office, corresponding Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, local panels of lawyers and activists.





The group discussions were quite fruitful. Well-grounded and detailed proposals were made by the participants; they can be found on our page on Facebook.





For reference. The Public consultations were held with the financial support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), The Global Affairs Canada. The opinions expressed during the events are by their authors and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of USAID, the governments of the USA, Canada, or the UK.





Note. The “Active Community” mission is to achieve welfare by means of democratic development of communities in Ukraine. The goal for 2025 is to get at least 1% of citizens active and systematically involved in decision making and reform promotion for welfare in communities. The Initiative was organized within the framework of the Institute “Respublica” activities. We are working to promote conscious action of the citizens.