In Mongolia, vote by text

photo from here.

Well, it isn't binding, but yes, the Prime Minister in Mongolia had a "text referendum" about his plans to back mining operations in the country rather than introduce austerity measures to help the economy improve. Mongolia's economy, like many others, has suffered recently with lower commodity prices and China's slower economy.

So this is what happened: there are lots of mobile phones in Mongolia. It can be the easiest way to keep in contact when so much of the country is incredibly rural. So the government sent a text to every single mobile number in the country (more than 3 million of them), asking whether they thought the government should step up on austerity programs or invest in growing the mining sector. Only about 300,000 people responded, but they voted 56% to prop up mining rather than austerity.

The vote didn't decide the issue for the government, but the support here will justify what the government wants to do. Austerity is never popular, but investing in industry sure can be.

source: Quartz