A constitutional referendum was held in

Nauru Nauru, officially the Republic of Nauru, formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country and microstate in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies within the Micronesia subregion of Oceania, with its nearest neighbour being Banaba (part of ...

on 13 November 2021. The referendum was the result of government proposal to amend article 31 of the

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...

to bar naturalised citizens and their descendants from becoming members of parliament, or holding the presidency or ministerial posts. The proposal was approved by 71% of voters. Voting was compulsory, with a fine for non-voters.Gazette 156-21: Electoral (Survey or Poll) Regulations 2021
Nauru Bulletin, 2 November 2021

Results

Voters were asked the question "Should the membership of parliament including the office of the president and ministers be reserved for Nauruans and their descendants who became Nauruan citizens in 1968 when the Constitution came into force".Parliament Jan-Feb 2022
Nauru Bulletin, 4 March 2022

Aftermath

Following the referendum, the government introduced a bill to amend article 31, adding four new disqualifications for becoming a member of parliament. These disqualified anyone living on the island at the time of independence who did not become a Nauruan citizen at independence, descendants of those who did not become citizens at independence, anyone gaining citizenship by naturalisation and descendants of those who gained citizenship by naturalisation.

References

{{Nauruan elections

Constitutional A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these princ ...

Referendums in Nauru