Ratification is the act of giving official sanction or approval to a formal docu

ment such as a treaty or constitution. It includes the process of adopting an in

ternational treaty by the legislature, a constitution, or another nationally bin
ding document (such as an amendment to a constitution) by the agreement of multi
ple sub-national entities.
Adopt implies accepting something created by another or foreign to one's nature
<forced to adopt new policies>
Adoption & Ratification
Ratification of a new constitution is usually separate from the decision to adop
t a draft as a final draft. There are two main approaches. One is to sponsor a rat
ification vote in the main deliberative body, such as the legislature or a const
ituent assembly. The second is to send the final draft to the public in a nation
al referendum. In rare instances, ratification takes place when a super-majority
of elected local assemblies casts a favorable vote.
Of the 195 cases studied in the first version of this project, 53.7 percent loca
ted the power to ratify in an assembly and 41.5 percent sponsored a national ref
erendum. In almost all instances where an indirectly elected or appointed transi
tional legislature developed the draft, leaders have chosen to send the document
to a referendum.
Although it is common to think that referenda elicit little real public involvem
ent in constitution making and simply rubber-stamp the views of the majority par
ty, the evidence suggests that populations do sometimes exercise their power to
decline what is on offer. For example, Zimbabwes most recent constitutional draft
suffered defeat in a referendum, and the citizens of Mauritius have repeatedly
sent their leaders back to the table for more discussion. The extent of involvem
ent by civic associations, ability to draw on existing electoral machinery, leng
th of the campaign period, and cost are all factors that might influence the cre
dibility and feasibility of a referendum.
Occasionally a country asks citizens for more than an up or down vote. A few cou
ntries have requested approval of both a specific item and the draft at the same
time. In these situations there can be confusion about what a persons favorable
vote meanswhether it is a vote on the draft as is or whether it is a vote in favo
r of the draft even if the particular language that is the subject of a separate
question fails and disappears from the text. It is also possible to ask citizen
s to cast a ballot for more than one draft text, but this procedure opens the po
ssibility that a draft might win ratification with less than 50 percent of the v
ote.