Home > 5.1 Nature of the referendum > Referendums in Europe - An Analysis of the Legal Rules in European States
 
 
 
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Paragraph 186
 

Referendums called by the municipal legislature exist at local level, for example in the following states: Belgium, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands  (temporary law) and “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”;in Hungary, a referendum may be called by the municipal council itself, a quarter of its members or one of its committees. Where the decision to hold a referendum is taken by the assembly, it may be initiated by part of the assembly or by an executive organ: in Bulgaria, for instance, at municipal level, the initiative may come from a quarter of the municipal councillors, the mayor of the municipality or the regional governor; in Portugal, from members of the assembly or the local executive; in both of these states, the assembly takes the final decision as to whether or not to hold a referendum, which, as will be explained further on, can be requested by a specified number of citizens.