Plebiszitäre Demokratie#

Direct democracy, political system in which the people decide directly. Modern states usually have representative democracies, in which the citizens delegate the decision-making power to elected organs and where means of direct democracy (in Austria referendum, plebiscite and popular initiative) are only seldom used. On a federal level two plebiscites have been held so far (in 1978 the plebiscite on the nuclear energy plant Zwentendorf; in 1994 on Austria's entry into the EU) and 16 popular initiatives (petition) have been initiated, mainly by opposition parties. Instruments of direct democracy also exist on provincial level.