A 'constitutional crisis' is a severe breakdown in the smooth operation of
government. Generally speaking, a constitutional crisis is a situation in which separate factions within a
government disagree about the extent to which each of these factions hold
sovereignty. Most commonly, constitutional crises involve some degree of conflict between different
branches of government (e.g.,
executive,
legislature, and/or
judiciary), or between different levels of government in a federal system (e.g.,
state and federal governments).
A constitutional crisis may occur because one or more parties to the dispute willfully chooses to violate a provision of a constitution or an unwritten constitutional convention, or it may occur when the disputants disagree over the interpretation of such a provision or convention. If the dispute arises because some aspect of the constitution is ambiguous or unclear, the ultimate resolution of the crisis often establishes a precedent for the future. For instance, the United States constitution is silent on the question of whether states are allowed to secede from the Union; however, after the secession of several states was forcibly prevented in the
American Civil War, it has become generally accepted that states cannot leave the Union.
A constitutional crisis is distinct from a
rebellion, which is defined as when factions ''outside'' of a government challenge that government's sovereignty, as in a
coup or
revolution led by the military or civilian protesters.
A constitutional crisis can lead to government paralysis, collapse, or
civil war.
Incomplete list of constitutional crises by country
Australia
★ The
Australian constitutional crisis of 1975 that saw Prime Minister
Gough Whitlam dismissed by the nation's normally apolitical
Governor General, in response to a prolonged budget deadlock in parliament.
Belgium
★ The controversy over the
wartime conduct of
Leopold III, which culminated in his
abdication in
1951.
★
Belgium saw a constitutional crisis in the
1990s when
King Badouin refused to sign a
law allowing
abortion.
Canada
★ The
King-Byng Affair of
1926 in
Canada, where
Governor General Viscount Byng of Vimy refused a request by
Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King that Parliament be dissolved and new elections called. Instead, Byng dismissed King and appointed
Arthur Meighen as Prime Minister.
★ The controversy over the
patriation of the
Constitution Act, 1867. The
Quebec Veto Reference found that
Québec did not have a veto on the patriation, leading to the current situation where the
National Assembly of Québec refuses to ratify the Constitution Act in its current form, even though it is still bound by it.
Democratic Republic of the Congo
★ President
Joseph Kasavubu and Prime Minister
Patrice Lumumba attempted to dismiss each other in September 1960. Kasavubu prevailed in a coup led by
Mobutu later that month.
Denmark
★ The
Easter Crisis of 1920, when
King Christian X of
Denmark dismissed the country's cabinet.
England
''For crises after 1707, see
United Kingdom''
★ The
1215 Barons' revolt against the rule of
King John, which led to the
Magna Carta. Immediately, John repudiated Magna Carta, leading to the
First Barons' War.
★ The
Break with Rome, when
King Henry VIII repudiated
papal authority and created himself
Supreme Head of the
Church of England.
★
King Charles I's insistence on the
Divine Right of Kings, manifest in the 11-year
Personal Rule, and leading directly to the
Wars of the Three Kingdoms.
★ The
Glorious Revolution of 1688-89. The flight of
King James II / VII from the country left no king in his place to rule England or Scotland or to summon a
Parliament. When
King William and Queen Mary jointly replaced him there was therefore no legally recognised Parliament to legitimise their irregular succession to the throne. This led to the
Crown and Parliament Recognition Act 1689.
Fiji
★ In the
Fiji constitutional crisis of 1977, the winning party in a general election failed to name a government due to internal conflicts. The Governor-General intervened, appointing a prime minister from the opposition party.
Iran
★
Mohammed Reza Pahlavi's 1953 dismissal of Prime Minister
Mohammed Mossadegh and Mossadegh's subsequent refusal to quit the office.
Malaysia
★ The
1988 Malaysian constitutional crisis was a series of events that began with the
United Malays National Organization (UMNO) general election in 1987 and ended with the suspension and the eventual removal of
Lord President of the Supreme Court of Malaysia
Tun Salleh Abas from his seat.
★ The
1993 Malaysian constitutional crisis involved the limitation of monarchs' power in Malaysia. Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamed successfully amended the constitution to bring the monarchies more accountable to their actions.
Malta
★ The
1981 election, when, due to a quirk in that country's
Single Transferrable Vote system, the party winning more than half the votes won less than half the seats.
Nepal
★ The
Loktantra Andolan movement of 2006, which rejected King
Gyanendra's year-long direct rule and stripped him of political authority.
New Zealand
★ The
New Zealand constitutional crisis of 1984 was caused by
Prime Minister Sir Robert Muldoon's refusal to devalue the
dollar as per the instructions of the Prime Minister-elect,
David Lange. The cabinet rebelled against Muldoon, who relented. The upshot was the passage of the
Constitution Act, which patriated the constitution from the United Kingdom.
Norway
★ The
dissolution of the union between
Sweden and
Norway in
1905.
Pakistan
★ Supreme Court Chief Justice
Sajjad Ali Shah clashed repeatedly with Prime Minister
Nawaz Sharif in late 1997, accusing him of undermining the court's independence. After Ali Shah suspended a constitutional amendment that prevented dismissal of the prime minister, Sharif ordered President
Farooq Leghari to appoint a new chief justice. When Leghari refused, Sharif considered
impeaching him, but backed down after a warning from the armed forces. Faced with a choice of accepting Sharif's demands or dismissing him, Leghari resigned. Ali Shah resigned shortly afterward, establishing Sharif's dominance.
Rome
★ The crossing of the
Rubicon by
Julius Caesar in
49 BC with his legions. This action, which had no precedent, precipitated a crisis only fully resolved in
31 BC, when
Octavian defeated all his enemies to become the sole master of the Roman world.
Russia
★ The
constitutional crisis of
1993: a conflict between
Russian President Boris Yeltsin and the Russian parliament lead by
Ruslan Khasbulatov, which resulted in a military siege of the parliament building and street fighting, claiming 187 lives.
Aleksandr Rutskoy assumed the powers of the Acting President of Russia for a few days.
Scotland
''For crises after 1707, see
United Kingdom''
★ The succession crisis resulting from the death of
Queen Margaret in
1290.
Edward I of England, whose
son Edward was to marry Margaret, was asked to arbitrate, and chose
John Balliol, who swore an
oath of fealty to Edward, turning Scotland into an English vassal in
1292. Soon, Balliol and the Scottish nobility revolted, leading to the
Wars of Scottish Independence.
Thailand
★ In March,
2006, 60 seats of the assembly of Thailand could not be elected, and Prime Minister
Thaksin Shinawatra resigned.
United Kingdom
★ The rejection of the
1909 People's Budget by the
House of Lords. This caused a two-year impasse, leading to the
1911 Parliament Act.
★ The
1936 Edward VIII abdication crisis, when
King Edward VIII proposed to marry divorcee
Wallis Simpson against the advice of his ministers.
United States of America
★ The
Nullification Crisis of 1832, in which
South Carolina declared that it would not permit collection of a federal tariff
★ The
secession of the southern
U.S. states prior to the
American Civil War, which the federal government did not recognize.
★
1876 presidential election:
Republicans and
Democrats disputed voting results in three Southern states. A
congressional panel voted along party lines in favor of Republican candidate
Rutherford B. Hayes, who dampened Southern fury by withdrawing federal troops from the South.
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