5 Turnout
As we can see in Figure 5.1, the average turnout in referendums has decreased from more than 80 % in the 1940ies to just under 50 % today. The trend is similar over the regions, except for Oceania, where participation is recovering after a long period of decline and is increasing on average.
Looking at turnout by institutional trigger type, we find that bottom-up referendums have the lowest turnout, followed by top-down referendums. Automatic referendums seem to have the highest turnout. However, there are vast differences over the different regions, as can be seen in figures Figure 5.2 and Figure 5.3. While participation in national bottom-up referendums in the Americas dramatically decreased over the last two decades, the opposite trend is observed in Oceania.
