Referendum
“Referendum”把立法或宪政议题直接交由选票决定;程序与门槛因国家而异,报道时常伴随激烈公共讨论。
- “Voters narrowly approved the referendum on transit funding.” (选民以微弱优势通过了交通融资公投。)
- “The referendum campaign lasted six tense months.” (公投造势活动持续了六个月,气氛紧张。)
- “Critics argued the referendum question was poorly worded.” (批评者认为公投题干措辞不当。)
拉丁语 referre(带回、提交)名词化为 referendum(需提交审议之事),现代民主制度借用该形式。
Refer + -endum(拉丁中性动名词后缀),结构与 memorandum、agendum 相似。
英国脱欧公投等案例使该词在全球媒体曝光度大增;中文读者应注意公投结果未必具备自动法律效力,要看各国宪法安排。
- 固定搭配: “call a referendum” (发动公投), “constitutional referendum” (修宪公投)
Refer(提交)给大家投票的东西,就是 referendum。
“Youth turnout surged during the climate referendum.” (气候议题公投期间,青年投票率激增。)