By its very nature an instrument of direct democracy, the recall is part of a set of direct democratic mechanisms of control, agenda setting and accountability beyond elections, which may operate, according to the national legal and constitutional traditions, as a complement to representative democracy (the popular initiative, the referendum, the petition, the recall and the veto). The common feature of all forms of direct democracy is that they are based on the direct power of the voters, as opposed to the power of the elected representatives. What differentiates the recall is that the decision taken concerns the crucial question whether to put an end to the office of an elected official or body before the end of the term. Hence, unlike other types of popular votes, the recall does not invite the voters to take a position on laws or policies but on persons or, more rarely, bodies as a whole. In addition, the direct election of such persons or bodies appears to be a pre-condition to the recourse to recall.