Referendums at the request of part of the electorate must be divided into two categories: the ordinary optional referendum and the popular initiative in the narrow sense. Both result in a popular vote without an authority taking a decision in this respect, but the authorities are least involved in the case of the popular initiative. An ordinary optional referendum challenges a text already approved by a state body, while a popular initiative enables part of the electorate to propose a text that has not yet been approved by any authority.