Quite a different question is whether there should be a preliminary examination of the draft proposal prior to its submission to popular vote, for example by the Department of Justice. The Venice Commission’s Code of Good Practice states that in order to avoid having to declare a vote totally invalid, an authority must have the power, prior to the vote, to correct faulty drafting, e.g. when the question is obscure, misleading or suggestive, or when rules on procedural or substantive validity have been violated.[1]
[1] Code of Good Practice on Referendums, III.4.g; see also below ch. VI.B.
