1935 Liberian constitutional referendum

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A constitutional referendum was held in Liberia on 7 May 1935, alongside legislative elections. The changes to the constitution ensured that President Edwin Barclay remained in office without the need for the presidential elections due that year. Although it was claimed to be for economic reasons, the government feared that an election may lead to instability that would lower confidence of foreign powers and creditors. The next elections took place in 1939.

Background

On 26 November 1934 the Legislature approved a term extension for the President. As this required amending the constitution, article 17 of chapter V of the constitution dictated that a referendum was required, with a two-thirds majority needed for the amendments to be passed.

Changes to the constitution

The referendum proposed modifying article 1 of chapter III of the constitution regarding the presidential term, whilst adding a new section to article 5 of chapter III regarding the civil service.

Section	Original text	Proposed text
Chapter III, Article 1, Section 1	The supreme executive power shall be vested in a President, who shall be elected by the people, and shall hold this office for the term of four years and be elected quadrennially	The supreme executive power shall be vested in a President, who shall be elected by the people, and shall hold office for the term of eight years. No president shall be elected for two consecutive terms.
Chapter III, Article 5, Section 2	–	The Legislature shall pass a standing law organizing and regulating the Civil Service of the Republic, which law shall declare what offices may be controlled by the provisions of said law. The provisions of this section of the Constitution relating to tenure of office shall not apply to offices falling within the provisions of the Civil Service law.
Source: Direct Democracy

References

^ Liberia, 7 May 1935: 8 years term of office for President, civil servant status Direct Democracy (in German)
Liberia Country Studies: The Barclay Administration Global Security
Elections in Liberia African Elections Database

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Legislative elections	1840 1847 1849 1851 1853 1855 1857 1859 1861 1863 1865 1867 1869 1871 1873 1875 1877 1879 1881 1883 1885 1887 1889 1891 1893 1895 1897 1899 1901 1903 1905 1907 1911 1915 1919 1923 1927 1931 1935 1939 1943 1951 1955 1959 1963 1967 1971 1975 1985 1997 2005 2011 2014 2017 2020 2023
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Referendums	1846 1847 1849 1861 1869 1870 1907 1927 1935 1943 1945 1946 1949 1955 1972 1975 1984 2011 2020
See also: Elections and referendums in the Republic of Maryland

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