How Switzerland is moving a step closer to giving 16-year-olds the right to vote
Under the current legislation, only Swiss citizens over the age of 18 are allowed to vote in the country’s referendums and elections on the national level. However, that rule could change.
On Monday, the National Council, the upper house of the Swiss parliament, narrowly approved the motion to lower the voting age to 16, even though many MPs oppose this change.
Currently, only Glarus allows 16-year-olds to cast their votes, but just on the cantonal level.
Supporters and opponents of the move to lower the voting age to 16 at the national level are divided along the political lines, with the right and centre-right parties against the change, while the left parties are in favour of it.
The right-wing Swiss People’s Party (SVP), for instance, is urging the MPs to abandon this project altogether.
On the left, meanwhile, MPs have argued that that young people are as affected by political decisions as adults are, but can’t participate in the democratic process themselves.
Rejections at the cantonal level
While Glarus allows 16-year-olds to vote locally, three other cantons have turned down this right.
In February 2020, Neuchâtel citizens refused to lower the voting age to 16, followed, in 2021, by Uri.
And in 2022, Zurich voters also turned down a proposal to lower the voting age to 16 within the canton.
READ ALSO: Zurich voters strongly reject lowering the voting age to 16
The issue was never brought to a national vote, however.
What happens next?
The topic, which has been debated in Switzerland for years, will now be discussed further by a specially convened parliamentary committee.
If the plan is ultimately accepted in the parliament, it will likely have to be voted on in a national referendum.
If it is approved then,16-year-olds (a group estimated at 130,000 people currently) will be able to vote at communal, cantonal, and national levels across Switzerland.
What about foreigners?
Lowering the voting age will not affect the current rules: foreign nationals are not allowed to vote at the federal level anywhere in the country.
However, some municipalities and cantons do permit foreigners to vote at the local level — provided they are over 18 years of age (just like Swiss citizens), have held a residence permit for at least 10 years, and have lived in the canton for at least three years.
How likely is this change to happen?
It’s too early to say, but there is a historical precedent for lowering the voting age.
When the Swiss federal state was created in 1848, the right to vote was fixed at 20 years.
It was lowered to 18 in 1991.
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On Monday, the National Council, the upper house of the Swiss parliament, narrowly approved the motion to lower the voting age to 16, even though many MPs oppose this change.
Currently, only Glarus allows 16-year-olds to cast their votes, but just on the cantonal level.
Supporters and opponents of the move to lower the voting age to 16 at the national level are divided along the political lines, with the right and centre-right parties against the change, while the left parties are in favour of it.
The right-wing Swiss People’s Party (SVP), for instance, is urging the MPs to abandon this project altogether.
On the left, meanwhile, MPs have argued that that young people are as affected by political decisions as adults are, but can’t participate in the democratic process themselves.
Rejections at the cantonal level
While Glarus allows 16-year-olds to vote locally, three other cantons have turned down this right.
In February 2020, Neuchâtel citizens refused to lower the voting age to 16, followed, in 2021, by Uri.
And in 2022, Zurich voters also turned down a proposal to lower the voting age to 16 within the canton.
READ ALSO: Zurich voters strongly reject lowering the voting age to 16
The issue was never brought to a national vote, however.
What happens next?
The topic, which has been debated in Switzerland for years, will now be discussed further by a specially convened parliamentary committee.
If the plan is ultimately accepted in the parliament, it will likely have to be voted on in a national referendum.
If it is approved then,16-year-olds (a group estimated at 130,000 people currently) will be able to vote at communal, cantonal, and national levels across Switzerland.
What about foreigners?
Lowering the voting age will not affect the current rules: foreign nationals are not allowed to vote at the federal level anywhere in the country.
However, some municipalities and cantons do permit foreigners to vote at the local level — provided they are over 18 years of age (just like Swiss citizens), have held a residence permit for at least 10 years, and have lived in the canton for at least three years.
How likely is this change to happen?
It’s too early to say, but there is a historical precedent for lowering the voting age.
When the Swiss federal state was created in 1848, the right to vote was fixed at 20 years.
It was lowered to 18 in 1991.
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