At stake in this Referendum:

• The referendum will ask voters to accept or reject 14 amendments to the Constitution of Micronesia.

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Leo A. FALCAM
• Head of Government: Head of Government Leo A. FALCAM
• Assembly: Micronesia has a unicameral Congress with 14 seats.

Description of electoral system:

• The President is elected by the congress to serve a 4-year term.
• In the Congress, 4 members are elected by proportional representation to serve 4-year terms and 10 members are elected by plurality vote in single-member constituencies to serve 2-year terms.*

* The four proportional representation seats are elected at-large.

Main provisions in the Referendum:

• Referendum on fourteen proposed amendments to the Constitution
  • Provide for a minimum of four justices for the FSM Supreme Court
    • 52.23% voted in favor
  • Allow FSM citizens to hold dual citizenships
    • 54.14% voted in favor
  • Change jurisdiction over any matter involving ownership of land and water from Supreme Court to state courts
    • 53.69% voted in favor
  • Ensure recognition and enforcement of any State's acts, records, and judicial proceedings among the other States
    • 53.58% voted in favor
  • Create an Office of the Independent Prosecutor to focus on financial wrongdoing of public officials
    • 53.84% voted in favor
  • Provide a pension for former Presidents and Vice Presidents
    • 25.89% voted in favor
  • Establish national educational accreditation standards and a fund to support them
    • 63.30% voted in favor
  • Provide for concurrent national and state power to levy a value-added tax
    • 50.49% voted in favor
  • Increase State share of tax revenue dispersed between the National/State Governments
    • 57.50% voted in favor
  • Increase number of Congress members and limit length of terms (this provision is complicated because it involves 3 separate issues - adding 4 new at-large seats, standardizing terms to 4 years for all seats, and instituting 12 year term limits overall - and yet voters must vote yes or no to all these together)
    • 43.13% voted in favor
  • Provide for the direct election of the President and the Vice President
    • 52.87% voted in favor
  • Establish procedures for allocating foreign aid funds
    • 53.92% voted in favor
  • Establish the number of votes required to pass Bills in congress
    • 49.85% voted in favor
  • Establish the number of votes needed to override a Presidential Veto
    • 53.24% voted in favor

Electoral Requirements

• A provision must have at least 75% of the vote in at least 3 of the 4 states to pass.

Note: None of the provisions achieved the electoral requirement and thus none were approved.

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 106,983 (2002)
• Registered Voters: N/A

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 52,813 (2002)

·         Is Micronesia a signatory to CEDAW: No

·         Has Micronesia ratified CEDAW: Yes, accession (1 September 2004)

·         Gender Quota: No

·         Female candidates in this election: N/A

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 0

·         Human Development Index Position: 123 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: N/A

Disability Data:

·         Is Micronesia a signatory to CRPD: Yes (23 September 2011)

·         Has Micronesia ratified CRPD: No

·         Population with a disability: 16,171 (est.)