Direkte Demokratie in der Schweiz – Landesbericht 2018 / Direct Democracy in Switzerland – Country Report 2018

Abstract

German Abstract: Dieser Landesbericht schildert die Entwicklung der schweizerischen direkten Demokratie im Berichtszeitraum. Er enthält einen Überblick über die hängigen Verfahren auf Bundesebene. Ausserdem werden Schwerpunkte der Entwicklung in Bund, Kantonen und Gemeinden behandelt.

English Abstract: This country report describes the clear failure of the much anticipated Sovereignty-Initiative (66% no-votes). However, another controversial initiative has been launched: the Limitation-Initiative wants to strictly enforce the immigration limits on citizens from EU states, thereby threatening the bilateral agreements of Switzerland with the European Union. As one of the most media-savvy initiatives in recent years, the Horned-Cow-Initiative that had been launched by a single farmer from the higher Alps failed to gain a majority of the people's vote. For the first time, the Federal Court had to cancel a direct democratic vote on the federal level. This was due to outdated and misleading information by the Federal Government regarding the impact of tax discrimination against married couples. Finally, the report analyzes the strong variations in the frequency of cantonal direct democratic votes both in terms of years as in terms of subject matters.

Note: Downloadable document is in German.

Keywords: Clear Failure of Sovereignty-Initiative, Limitation-Initiative, Horned-Cow-Initiative, Cancellation of a Direct Democratic Vote, Frequency of Public Votes on Cantonal Level