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Mandatory referendums in Switzerland

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Swiss Federal Constitution, 1874

Switzerland employs mandatory referendums as a tool of direct democracy.[1]

This type of referendum is utilized after an item has been passed by parliament and is then put to a vote. In contrast, an optional referendum is only held after a certain number of citizens or cantons request it.

At the federal level, Article 140, paragraph 1[2] of the Federal Constitution mandates compulsory voting on revisions to the Federal Constitution, the collective security organization membership (e.g., NATO), supranational communities (e.g., the EU), federal laws that lack a constitutional basis and are valid for more than a year (an emergency procedure). Article 140 paragraph 2[3] of the Federal Constitution mandates that only the people vote on certain matters, primarily as a component of the procedure for the comprehensive revision of the Federal Constitution.[4]

At the cantonal level, each federated state's constitution regulates which matters necessitate a mandatory referendum. Consequently, there exist various scenarios. Nonetheless, all cantons must subject the revision of their constitution to a mandatory referendum (article 51[5]). Some states also subject all state laws to a compulsory referendum, as well as any expense that exceeds a certain amount (referred to as a "financial" referendum).

Referendum results

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Mandatory referendums[6][7] 1848-1950 1951-1980 1981-2020 (mar.) Total
Accepted 43 58 73 174
Rejected 20 17 29 66
Total 63 75 102 240

See also

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References

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  1. ^ ChF, Chancellerie fédérale. "La Confédération en bref". www.bk.admin.ch (in French). Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  2. ^ "Article 140 Constitution fédérale de la Confédération suisse". Confédération suisse.
  3. ^ "Article 140 Constitution fédérale Suisse". Constitution Suisse.
  4. ^ "Lexique du Parlement". L'Assemblée fédérale: le Parlement suisse.
  5. ^ "Article 51 Constitution fédérale Suisse". Constitution Suisse.
  6. ^ "Liste des votations en suisse". Chancellerie fédérale Suisse (in Français, Allemand, Italien, Romanche, and Anglais). Retrieved 25.03.2020.
  7. ^ Office fédéral de la Statistique. "Votations". www.bfs.admin.ch (in French). Retrieved 2020-03-25.
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