If the government and the Provisional Electoral Council never miss a chance to talk about the general elections in the country, they always fail to mention the constitutional referendum.
If the government and the Provisional Electoral Council never miss a chance to talk about the general elections in the country, they always fail to mention the constitutional referendum. However, in the electoral decree of June 2, 2026, both entities agree to make changes to the country’s Constitution.
As if the PEC and the government were afraid of the term ‘constitutional referendum,’ they prefer to talk about a ‘popular ratification of a limited number of changes to the Constitution of the Republic’ in the electoral decree. Also, in their press releases and public statements, these two entities avoid mentioning either term. It seems like they’re on the same page about this.However, right from the first article of the electoral decree, the electoral institution and the government agree to amend the country’s Main Law.
“This Decree lays out the rules for the presidential election, legislative elections, local and indirect elections, as well as the popular ratification of a limited number of changes to the Constitution of the Republic,” according to Article 1 of the electoral decree.
Article 72 of the electoral decree states that, “The CEP organizes the elections for the positions to be filled and the popular ratification of the proposed changes to the Constitution in accordance with the National Pact for the Stability and Organization of Elections of February 21, 2026, published in the Official Journal Le Moniteur.”According to Article 73.1 of the document, the popular ratification of proposed changes to the Constitution takes place in a single-round majority vote. “It is held during the first round of the presidential and legislative elections.”
“Voters are called, at the request of the CEP, to elect the President of the Republic, senators, deputies, and members of territorial communities, and to carry out the popular ratification of a limited number of proposed constitutional changes, by decree issued in the Council of Ministers specifying the purpose, locations, and date of the call,” states Article 75 of the electoral decree.Article 194 emphasizes that ‘Proposed changes to the Constitution of the Republic are published in the Official Journal Le Moniteur no later than ninety (90) days before the voting date. The Executive informs the public and explains the content of the document on the proposed changes to the Constitution through all available means of communication. Awareness campaigns for or against the proposed changes to the Constitution are allowed.’
The decree in its Article 196.1 states that public administration officials cannot participate in awareness campaigns for or against the proposed changes to the Constitution, and according to Article 197, public media must give equal space to supporters of ‘yes/wi’ and supporters of ‘no’ to the proposed changes to the Constitution.“As part of the popular ratification of the proposed changes to the Constitution, the ballot is titled: ‘Republic of Haiti: Proposal for changes to the Constitution’ and includes the following question: ‘Do you approve the proposed changes to the Constitution? Eske w dakò ak chanjman sa yo nan Konstitisyon an?’ It contains two (2) boxes: 1. one in green with the wording: ‘Yes / Wi’; 2. the other in white with the wording: ‘No,’ explains Article 220.1.
Article 237.1 adds that as part of the popular ratification of the proposed changes to the Constitution, the citizen marks the box of their choice ‘Yes / Wi’ or ‘No’ with a clear and distinct mark. ‘In this case, the vote is valid. Otherwise, the vote is null.’The CEP publishes the results of the popular ratification and elections by ordering them to be posted in the BEDs, the BECs, and on the CEP’s website, according to Article 265.
“In the event of ratification of the proposed changes to the Constitution, the start and end dates of the terms of elected officials in the next elections held under this Decree are set according to these changes,” according to Article 382.
And Article 383 points out that in “case of a vote against the proposed changes to the Constitution, the terms of the next elected officials are determined according to the provisions of the Constitution of the Republic and as follows: 1. the term of the President of the Republic ends mandatorily on the seventh (7th) of February of the fifth year of his term in accordance with Articles 134.1 and 134.2 of the Constitution of the Republic;Point 2 of this article states that the Senators’ term ends as follows: a. the Senator elected with the highest number of votes serves a six (6) year term, ending on the second Monday of January in the sixth year of their term; b. the Senator elected with the next highest number of votes serves a four (4) year term, ending on the second Monday of January in the fourth year of their term; c. the Senator elected with the next highest number of votes after the first two serves a two (2) year term, ending on the second Monday of January in the second year of their term;Next, point 3 states that the mandate of the deputies ends on the second Monday of January of the fourth year of their term in accordance with articles 92 and 92.1 of the Constitution of the Republic; 4. the mandate of the elected officials of the Territorial Collectivities ends on the date of the fourth year of their taking office in accordance with articles 63 and following of the Constitution of the Republic.
As for Haitians living abroad who have the right to vote, they “vote on the popular ratification of a limited number of changes to the Constitution and vote to elect the President of the Republic in the Haitian communities of the diaspora duly identified by the CEP,” according to article 384 of the electoral decree.
