Il referendum in Irlanda: come prendersi cura della Costituzione

The author discusses the historical and cultural significance of the Irish Constitution and the use of referendums as a tool for societal progress. Highlighting high turnout in social issues like marriage equality (2015) and abortion (2018), the text emphasizes the importance of youth participation and the role of Citizens' Assemblies. It recommends making the independent referendum commission permanent and introducing postal voting to increase accessibility, while arguing against grouping multiple referendums on a single day to avoid voter confusion.

• The Irish Constitution, established in 1922 and reformulated in 1937, was heavily influenced by the Catholic Church, creating a legal framework that eventually became restrictive and out of step with a modern state.
• Referendums on social issues have generated the highest voter engagement in Ireland, with the 2018 abortion amendment reaching 64.1% turnout and the 2015 marriage equality amendment reaching 62.1%.
• The 2015 marriage equality referendum marked a turning point in youth political mobilization in Ireland, driven significantly by social media and the #HomeToVote campaign.
• To improve the democratic process, the author proposes introducing postal voting to remove barriers to access and transforming the current non-permanent independent referendum commission into a permanent body that advises on the formulation of amendments.
• The author opposes the adoption of a 'Super Tuesday' style approach of voting on multiple referendums in one day, arguing it would cause confusion and devalue the careful consideration required for constitutional changes.

APA

O’Keeffe, S. (2021). Il referendum in Irlanda: come prendersi cura della Costituzione. Green European Journal. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/il-referendum-in-irlanda-come-prendersi-cura-della-costituzione/

Chicago

O’Keeffe, Susan. Il referendum in Irlanda: come prendersi cura della Costituzione. Green European Journal, 2021. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/il-referendum-in-irlanda-come-prendersi-cura-della-costituzione/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=O’Keeffe |first1=Susan |title=Il referendum in Irlanda: come prendersi cura della Costituzione |publisher=Green European Journal |date=29 November 2021 |url=https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/il-referendum-in-irlanda-come-prendersi-cura-della-costituzione/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{okeeffe2021referendum, author = {O’Keeffe, Susan}, title = {{Il referendum in Irlanda: come prendersi cura della Costituzione}}, institution = {Green European Journal}, year = {2021}, month = nov, url = {https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/il-referendum-in-irlanda-come-prendersi-cura-della-costituzione/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }