IFES Election Guide | Elections: Slovenia Referendum 2026

Oct. 11, 2026 Confirmed

Republic of Slovenia

Referendum

General Information

At Stake in this Election:

On October 11, 2026, Slovenian voters will decide whether to approve of one binding legislative referendum and three consultative referendums.

The binding legislative referendum was initiated by civil society groups and will ask voters whether to implement the recent Act on Amendments to the Parliamentary Investigation Act that was adopted by the National Assembly in May 2026.

Binding legislative referendum text in English (informal translation): “Are you in favor of implementing the Act on Amendments to the Parliamentary Investigation Act (ZPPre-B), adopted by the National Assembly at its session on May 26, 2026?”

First consultative referendum

Text in Slovenian: »Ali ste za to, da se pravica do denarne socialne pomoči za delovno sposobne osebe, ki nimajo objektivnih ovir za delo, pogojuje z njihovim aktivnim opravljanjem družbeno koristnega dela?«
Text in English (informal translation): “Are you in favor of making the right to financial social assistance for able-bodied persons who do not have objective obstacles to work conditional on their active performance of socially useful work?”

Second consultative referendum

Text in Slovenian: »Ali ste za to, da imajo pravico voliti na lokalnih volitvah v Republiki Sloveniji državljani Republike Slovenije ali druge države članice Evropske unije, ne pa tudi državljani tretjih držav, ki niso državljani Republike Slovenije?«
Text in English (informal translation): “Are you in favor of citizens of the Republic of Slovenia or other European Union member states having the right to vote in local elections in the Republic of Slovenia, but not citizens of third countries who are not citizens of the Republic of Slovenia?"

Third consultative referendum

Text in Slovenian: »Ali ste za to, da se ukine obvezno plačevanje prispevka za programe Radiotelevizije Slovenija?«

Text in English (informal translation): “Are you in favor of abolishing the mandatory payment of a contribution for Radiotelevision Slovenia programs?”

Government Structure:

Chief of State: President Nataša Pirc MUSAR (since 23 December 2022)

Head of Government: Prime Minister Janez JANŠA (since 4 June 2026)

Assembly: bicameral Parliament with (Other language name) with a 40-seat National Council (Drzavni Svet) and a 90-seat National Assembly (Drzavni Zbor).

Electoral System:

The President is directly elected via a simple majority vote to serve a five-year term, renewable once. If the end of a term falls within a state of emergency or war, the term is automatically extended until 6 months after the cessation of the state of emergency.

The Prime Minister is indirectly elected by the parliament.

Members of the National Council are indirectly elected by an electoral college. 22 members represent local interest groups, 6 representatives represent non-commercial groups, 4 members represent farmers and craftsmen, 4 members represent employers, and 4 members represent employers. Members of the National Council serve 5-year terms.

88 members of the National Assembly, called Deputies, are directly elected via a proportional representation system, with a 4% threshold required for election. Two seats are reserved for a representative from the Italian and Hungarian communities, one per community.

Last Election:

The Republic of Slovenia last held a referendum on 11 May 2025. Voters rejected a referendum question asking if voters were in favor of enforcing the Outstanding Achievements in the Arts Pension Supplement Act (ZDPIDU) passed by the National Assembly in its session on 30 January 2025. Voter turnout was 26%.

New/Unique in this Election:

The October 11 referendum is being referred to as a “super-referendum,” as the newly installed government seeks a political mandate for reforms. The first question is a binding legislative referendum, whereby voters will decide whether the act in question will be implemented. The other three referendum questions, by contrast, are non-binding, meaning the government is not required to implement the reforms, but can point to results as evidence of public will for possible future reforms. Civil society groups caution that the legislation being considered in the first may remove preventative judicial safeguards and allow parliamentary inquiries to start immediately without receiving Constitutional Court review.

Information for Voters:

REFERENDUMI 11. OKTOBRA 2026; REFERENDUMS ON OCTOBER 11 2026 (in English): https://www.dvk-rs.si/volitve-in-referendumi/referendumi/volitve-referenduma/zakonodajni-referendum-o-zppre-b-in-posvetovalni-referendumi-lokalne-voliltve-socialni-prejemki-in-rtv/

Key Deadlines:

Candidate filing deadline: N/A

Voter registration deadline: N/A, registration is passive

Country Context:

Population: 2,130,986 (2025 est.)

Registered Voters: 1,692,455 (2026 est.)

V-Dem Electoral Democracy Index Score: 0.69 (2026)

V-Dem Regimes of the World Classification: Electoral Democracy (2026)

Human Development Index (HDI) Position: 0.931, Very high, Rank 21 (2025)

Gender Data:

Female Population: 1,059,210 (2025 est.)

CEDAW Status: Ratified through succession on July 6, 1991,

Gender Quota: yes, 35% gender quota in the lower house (Drzavni Zbor/National Assembly); there is no gender quota for the upper house (Drzavni Svet/National Council)

Female Candidates in this election: n/a

Number of Female Legislators (pre-election): 33 out of 90 (36.7%) in the (Drzavni Zbor/National Assembly) and 7 out of 40 (17.5%) in the (Drzavni Svet/National Council)