A report published this week by the Aarau Center for Democracy shows how far Switzerland leads the world on voting.
Since 1848, Swiss voters have been asked to decide on 689 federal referenda and elections, a multiple of the number in any other nation. If cantonal and municipal votes are added the number of decisions presented to voters the total is probably ten times this number.
Since 1900, 622 federal referenda have been held in Switzerland. The nations with the next highest numbers are New Zealand (117), Liechtenstein (115), Northern Mariana Islands (110), Italy (81) and Ecuador (70).
The topics covered by referenda in Switzerland are broad, ranging from Covid laws, taxation and climate proposals. Even the choice of fighter jet was recently put to Swiss voters. In other nations, referenda are used more narrowly, typically for questions related to the organisation of the state, for example: how long heads of state should be allowed to hold office or the system of election. In New Zealand there have been two votes on the length of the parliamentary term (1967, 1990) and three on the voting system (1992, 1993, 2011).
More on this:
The World of Referendums report 2023 (in English)
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