1851 French constitutional referendum

A referendum was held in France on 20 and 21 December 1851.[1] Voters were asked whether they approved of the continuation of the authority of Louis Napoléon Bonaparte and to delegate the powers required to produce a new constitution.[2] It was approved by 92% of voters with an 81.7% turnout.[2]

Results

92.03% of French voters voted in favor of the amendment, while 18.35% of electors abstained from voting. The official tally and free nature of the vote were questioned by dissidents like Victor Hugo.

Referendum results

Choice	Votes	%
Yes	7,481,231	92.0
No	647,292	8.0
Valid votes	8,128,523	99.5
Invalid or blank votes	37,107	0.5
Total votes	8,165,630	100.00

References

1. Dieter Nohlen & Philip Stöver (2010) Elections in Europe: A data handbook, p. 673 ISBN 978-3-8329-5609-7
2. Nohlen & Stöver, p. 683