We understand by popular initiative that instance in which the people can sovereignly present a proposal of legislation that is dealt with in the corresponding legislative body and that can eventually become law.
The notion of popular initiative is relatively recent in the field of politics if we take into account that politics became a popular right in recent centuries and since then the people have really been able to participate in different instances. It is clear that in a democratic system the main instance of participation is the suffrage or vote when there are elections, but then other less known but not less important options are on the way. The popular initiative is one of them and its main objective is that the different sectors of society can present bills to the legislative bodies so that they can deal with them. In many cases, these proposals tend to have to do with the direct needs of the people or the sector in question that are not being taken into account or addressed by the different branches of government.
The requirements for the presentation of a popular initiative vary greatly according to the region or country that determines them, but in most cases it has to be validated with a minimum number of signatures that prove that it is not a particular or individual project. which is something that concerns a large part of the population. In other cases, some countries have limits on the topics or areas on which a project of this type can be presented and this is when, for example, it deals with problems such as the budget, the constitution, the powers of the State, etc.
In general, there are not many popular initiatives that reach the legislative bodies since they require a large number of adhesions and also must avoid the possible games that are carried out within the legislative body in question that prevent it from being dealt with. In addition, it is very common for this type of popular initiatives to have to do with social, economic or cultural issues that directly affect the people.
