Which country has the highest First Referendum Initiative Held?

South Sudan has the highest First Referendum Initiative Held, at 2,011, followed by Montenegro (2,006) and Kenya (2,005).

Which country has the lowest First Referendum Initiative Held?

France has the lowest First Referendum Initiative Held, at 1,793.

What is the median First Referendum Initiative Held across countries?

The median is 1,966 across the 150 countries with data.

Where does this referendums by country data come from?

Rankodex compiles it from World Population Review and the primary sources it cites: Legal provisions for mandatory referendums at national level - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA); Legal provisions for optional referendums at national level - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA); First referendum/initiative held - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA); Issues in relation to which referendums are mandatory at the national level - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA).

Country rankings

Referendums by Country

Name: Referendums by Country
Creator: Rankodex

South Sudan has the highest First Referendum Initiative Held (2,011), followed by Montenegro (2,006) and Kenya (2,005). France has the lowest (1,793).

Law196 countries · 14 metricsUpdated Feb 25, 2025Original page

14 sources

Legal provisions for mandatory referendums at national level - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA)
Legal provisions for optional referendums at national level - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA)
First referendum/initiative held - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA)
Issues in relation to which referendums are mandatory at the national level - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA)
Issues in relation to which referendums are optional at the national level - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA)
Issues excluded from being the subject of referendums at the national level - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA)
Issues of sub-national referendums regulated at the national level - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA)
Who can initiate an optional referendum at the national level? - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA)
Who drafts the referendum question? - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA)
Who decides on the final form of the ballot text? - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA)
Quorum requirements for a referendum to be valid - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA)
Requirements for a referendum to pass - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA)
Are referendum results binding? - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA)
Referendums by country - Wikipedia

ShowingFirst Referendum Initiative HeldBetter directionWhether a higher or a lower value is better. A green arrow means higher is better, a red arrow means lower is better, and no arrow means neither.More in the glossary →

150 of 235 countries

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First Referendum Initiative Held

Darker means higher. Click a place to highlight it.

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Ranking

Highest first: the first 15 and last 5 of 150 countries.

Distribution Median and middle halfThe median is the middle value: half of places are above it, half below. The middle half is the range holding the central 50% of places.More in the glossary →

Each dot is one country; the lines mark the median and the middle half.

Median

1,966

Middle half 1,945 – 1,990

Average

1,959

150 countries

Highest

2,011

South Sudan

Lowest

1,793

France

Data

Click a column to sort, a row to highlight that place on the charts.

196 countries · # = rank by First Referendum Initiative Held

#
117	India	No	No	1,937
—	United States	No	No	Not applicable
—	China	No	No	No data
—	Indonesia	No	No	No data
3	Kenya	Yes	Yes	2,005
10	Uganda	Yes	Yes	2,000
22	Russia	No	Yes	1,993
27	Yemen	Yes	No	1,991
27	Ukraine	Yes	Yes	1,991
27	Uzbekistan	Yes	Yes	1,991
47	Pakistan	No	Yes	1,984
47	Argentina	No	Yes	1,984
56	Bangladesh	No	No	1,977
62	United Kingdom	Yes	Yes	1,975
68	Myanmar	Yes	No	1,973
69	Madagascar	Yes	Yes	1,972
70	Sudan	No	Yes	1,971
76	Tanzania	Yes	Yes	1,965
80	Nigeria	Yes	No	1,963
80	Brazil	No	Yes	1,963
80	DR Congo	Yes	No	1,963
88	Turkey	Yes	Yes	1,961
88	Algeria	Yes	Yes	1,961
95	South Africa	No	Yes	1,960
95	Ghana	Yes	No	1,960
99	Colombia	No	Yes	1,957
99	Malaysia	No	No	1,957
102	Egypt	Yes	Yes	1,956
104	Vietnam	No	Yes	1,955
105	Iran	Yes	Yes	1,953
109	Spain	Yes	Yes	1,947
110	Poland	No	Yes	1,946
119	Philippines	Yes	Yes	1,935
123	Italy	No	Yes	1,929
124	Germany	No	No	1,926
129	Peru	Yes	Yes	1,919
138	Canada	No	Yes	1,898
146	Mexico	No	Yes	1,863
150	France	Yes	Yes	1,793
—	Morocco	Yes	Yes	No data
—	Saudi Arabia	No	No	No data
1	South Sudan	No	Yes	2,011
3	Netherlands	No	No	2,005
5	Czechia	No	No, but ad hoc referendums are possible	2,003
7	Tunisia	No	Yes	2,002
10	Zimbabwe	No	Yes	2,000
13	Kazakhstan	No	Yes	1,995
16	Taiwan	Yes	Yes	1,994
16	Tajikistan	Yes	Yes	1,994
22	Malawi	Yes	No	1,993
42	Chad	Yes	Yes	1,989
42	Hungary	Yes	Yes	1,989
44	Niger	Yes	Yes	1,987
49	Sri Lanka	Yes	Yes	1,982
49	Burundi	No	Yes	1,982
52	Nepal	No	Yes	1,980
53	Ecuador	Yes	Yes	1,978
60	Cuba	—	Yes	1,976
64	Mali	Yes	Yes	1,974
76	Zambia	Yes	Yes	1,965
79	Benin	Yes	Yes	1,964
80	Senegal	No	Yes	1,963
88	Cameroon	No	Yes	1,961
88	Somalia	Yes	No	1,961
88	Rwanda	Yes	Yes	1,961
97	Burkina Faso	Yes	Yes	1,959
98	Guinea	—	—	1,958
99	Venezuela	Yes	Yes	1,957
102	Togo	Yes	Yes	1,956
106	Belgium	No	No	1,950
108	Syria	No	Yes	1,949
112	Cambodia	No	No, but ad hoc referendums are possible	1,945
115	Austria	Yes	Yes	1,938
119	Guatemala	Yes	No	1,935
121	Bolivia	Yes	Yes	1,931
128	Greece	No	Yes	1,920
132	Haiti	No	No	1,918
135	Sweden	No	Yes	1,910
138	Australia	Yes	No, but ad hoc referendums are possible	1,898
141	Dominican Republic	Yes	Yes	1,870
141	Honduras	No	Yes	1,870
145	Romania	Yes	Yes	1,864
149	Chile	No	Yes	1,812
—	Jordan	No	No	No data
—	United Arab Emirates	No	No	No data
—	Papua New Guinea	No	No	No data
5	Qatar	No	Yes	2,003
13	Belarus	Yes	Yes	1,995
13	Gabon	Yes	Yes	1,995
16	Slovakia	Yes	Yes	1,994
16	Moldova	Yes	Yes	1,994
16	Albania	No	Yes	1,994
22	Eritrea	No	No, but ad hoc referendums are possible	1,993
25	Bosnia and Herzegovina	No	No	1,992
27	Turkmenistan	Yes	Yes	1,991
27	Kyrgyzstan	No	Yes	1,991
27	Mauritania	Yes	Yes	1,991
27	Croatia	Yes	Yes	1,991
27	Georgia	No	Yes	1,991
27	Armenia	Yes	Yes	1,991
27	Lithuania	Yes	Yes	1,991
38	Serbia	Yes	Yes	1,990
38	Slovenia	No	Yes	1,990
44	Botswana	Yes	No	1,987
51	Central African Republic	Yes	Yes	1,981
53	Sierra Leone	Yes	No	1,978
70	Libya	Yes	No	1,971
76	Gambia	Yes	Yes	1,965
80	Republic of the Congo	Yes	Yes	1,963
80	Equatorial Guinea	No	Yes	1,963
86	Singapore	Yes	No	1,962
88	Jamaica	Yes	Yes	1,961
110	Namibia	No	Yes	1,946
112	Mongolia	No	Yes	1,945
114	Panama	Yes	No	1,940
115	Paraguay	Yes	Yes	1,938
117	Ireland	Yes	Yes	1,937
121	Finland	No	Yes	1,931
125	Latvia	Yes	Yes	1,923
127	Bulgaria	No	Yes	1,922
147	Switzerland	Yes	Yes	1,848
—	El Salvador	Yes	No	No data
134	Denmark	Yes	Yes	1,916
148	Liberia	Yes	No	1,846
—	Palestine	No	No, but ad hoc referendums are possible	No data
—	Oman	No	No	No data
2	Montenegro	Yes	Yes	2,006
7	Bahamas	Yes	No	2,002
9	Bahrain	No	Yes	2,001
12	Timor-Leste	No	Yes	1,999
16	Cook Islands	Yes	Yes	1,994
25	Seychelles	Yes	No	1,992
27	North Macedonia	Yes	Yes	1,991
38	Sao Tome and Principe	No	Yes	1,990
38	Bermuda	No	Yes	1,990
44	Suriname	No	Yes	1,987
53	Guyana	No	No	1,978
56	Djibouti	—	—	1,977
56	Saint Kitts and Nevis	Yes	No	1,977
56	Marshall Islands	Yes	Yes	1,977
60	Palau	Yes	Yes	1,976
62	Micronesia	Yes	No	1,975
64	Kiribati	Yes	No	1,974
64	Tuvalu	No	No	1,974
64	Niue	Yes	No	1,974
70	Andorra	Yes	Yes	1,971
73	Maldives	Yes	Yes	1,968
74	Gibraltar	Yes	Yes	1,967
74	Anguilla	No	No	1,967
86	Eswatini	Yes	No	1,962
88	Samoa	Yes	No	1,961
106	Cyprus	No	No, but ad hoc referendums are possible	1,950
125	Estonia	Yes	Yes	1,923
129	Luxembourg	No	Yes	1,919
129	Liechtenstein	Yes	Yes	1,919
133	Uruguay	Yes	Yes	1,917
136	Iceland	—	—	1,908
137	Norway	No	No, but ad hoc referendums are possible	1,905
140	New Zealand	No	Yes	1,894
141	Costa Rica	No	Yes	1,870
141	Malta	Yes	Yes	1,870
—	Tonga	No	No	No data
—	Ethiopia	Yes	No	—
—	Japan	Yes	No	—
—	Thailand	Yes	Yes	—
—	South Korea	Yes	Yes	—
—	Iraq	Yes	No	—
—	Afghanistan	No	Yes	—
—	Angola	No	Yes	—
—	Mozambique	No	Yes	—
—	Ivory Coast	Yes	Yes	—
—	Azerbaijan	Yes	Yes	—
—	Portugal	Yes	Yes	—
—	Israel	No	No	—
—	Laos	No	No	—
—	Nicaragua	No	Yes	—
—	Lebanon	No	No	—
—	Kuwait	No	No	—
—	Lesotho	Yes	Yes	—
—	Mauritius	Yes	No	—
—	Fiji	Yes	No	—
—	Bhutan	No	Yes	—
—	Cape Verde	No	Yes	—
—	Brunei	No	No	—
—	Belize	Yes	Yes	—
—	Vanuatu	Yes	No	—
—	Barbados	No	No, but ad hoc referendums are possible	—
—	Saint Lucia	Yes	No	—
—	Grenada	Yes	No	—
—	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Yes	No	—
—	Antigua and Barbuda	Yes	Yes	—
—	Cayman Islands	No	Yes	—
—	Dominica	Yes	No	—
—	Greenland	Yes	Yes	—
—	Nauru	Yes	No	—
—	Montserrat	No	No	—

What correlates with First Referendum Initiative Held?

Pearson r against 1,420 other country metrics sharing at least 90 countries. Correlation is not causation.

Higher together

Places that have a higher First Referendum Initiative Held tend to score higher on these

Factionalized ElitesFailed States
r = +0.47 · moderate · n = 136
Plot
Joining YearInternational Maritime Organization
r = +0.47 · moderate · n = 129
Plot
Lunio 2020Tier 1 Countries
r = +0.44 · moderate · n = 109
Plot
Marketing Experts 2023Tier 1 Countries
r = +0.43 · moderate · n = 109
Plot
External InterventionFailed States
r = +0.43 · moderate · n = 136
Plot
State LegitimacyFailed States
r = +0.40 · moderate · n = 136
Plot

Opposite directions

Places that have a higher First Referendum Initiative Held tend to score lower on these

Global FavorabilityMost Famous Country in the World
r = −0.50 · strong · n = 144
Plot
Global Acceptance Index 2017-2020Gay-Friendly Countries
r = −0.50 · moderate · n = 130
Plot
Global Acceptance IndexLGBT Rights by Country
r = −0.49 · moderate · n = 132
Plot
Anorexia Nervosa - MaleAnorexia Rates by Country
r = −0.49 · moderate · n = 147
Plot
Anorexia NervosaAnorexia Rates by Country
r = −0.47 · moderate · n = 147
Plot
Median Fixed Broadband DL SpeedInternet Speeds by Country
r = −0.46 · moderate · n = 121
Plot

Quick answers

Which country has the highest First Referendum Initiative Held?: South Sudan has the highest First Referendum Initiative Held, at 2,011, followed by Montenegro (2,006) and Kenya (2,005).
Which country has the lowest First Referendum Initiative Held?: France has the lowest First Referendum Initiative Held, at 1,793.
What is the median First Referendum Initiative Held across countries?: The median is 1,966 across the 150 countries with data.
Where does this referendums by country data come from?: Rankodex compiles it from World Population Review and the primary sources it cites: Legal provisions for mandatory referendums at national level - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA); Legal provisions for optional referendums at national level - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA); First referendum/initiative held - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA); Issues in relation to which referendums are mandatory at the national level - Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance (IDEA).