How the main political parties approach the “Fifth Switzerland”

A dozen men and women gathered together in the capital city in late summer 2022. They worked doggedly, had lively discussions with like-minded people online – and finally lined up at the end of the meeting to take a group selfie, with everyone grinning and giving a thumbs-up.

What was going on? The Green Liberal Party (GLP) was launching its international section, GLP International. The party felt it was a logical step, as Green Liberal candidates had already achieved noticeable success in the previous federal elections, in 2019.

Founding a section in a small group like this is evidence of a broader trend: the political parties in Switzerland with the largest voting base are leading the way by attaching increasing weight to the role of the Swiss Abroad who want to vote and express their choice. As a result of this step by the GLP, the six largest parties now all have a foreign section or a network for party members abroad.

Around 4.7% per year: this is how strongly the number of people registered to vote is rising on average in the Fifth Switzerland.

The number of voters in the “Fifth Switzerland” is steadily rising

This is not surprising given that the number of Swiss Abroad who take an interest in politics and are registered to vote is steadily rising. Around 181,000 eligible people had registered to vote in 2017, and this figure had risen to 218,00 by 2021.

If this trend continues, there may be as many as 230,000 people registered to vote in the run-up to the federal elections on 22 October this year. This also means that the number of Swiss Abroad is growing by around 1.4 % on average, but the percentage of eligible people registered to vote is growing at a good three times that rate – 4.7 % on average over the last four years. This changes the political weight of the “Fifth Switzerland”. If its potential over the years was comparable to that of Canton Thurgau (178,000 eligible voters), it is now closing the gap – in terms of the number of registered voters – with the cantons of Ticino and Valais. In other words, in close races, votes from abroad could become increasingly decisive.

“Without e-voting, turnout among the Swiss Abroad is around one-third lower than it is with e-voting.”

Sandro Liniger

SP representative

For the political parties, fulfilling the requirements of those who live abroad is admittedly no less challenging. The six largest Swiss parties are now all investing in the “Fifth Switzerland”. The acute determining factor remains, however, that federal elections are organised at cantonal level. Yannik Beugger, from the general secretariat of the SVP, also mentions this: “Nominating candidates is the responsibility of the cantonal parties.”

No, there is no “Fifth Switzerland” constituency

The reason behind the considerable weight of the cantonal parties is easy to explain: there is no “Fifth Switzerland” constituency; the Swiss Abroad are entitled to vote in their home canton and can also only stand for office in that canton. They therefore represent a very fragmented electorate overall, rather than a political unit.

SVP International, according to Yannick Beugger, will now at least seek dialogue with cantonal parties where there are independent lists of Swiss Abroad candidates standing.

The SP has already had a similar experience. In 2019, SP International ran an independent campaign, ran its own lists in several cantons, and was able to set its own agenda. At the upcoming 2023 federal elections, SP Geneva is expected to field a separate list of Swiss Abroad candidates. Apart from that, the SP is pursuing the goal of fielding targeted lists of candidates from the “Fifth Switzerland”. In addition, according to the SP international secretary, Sandro Liniger, campaign rallies are to be held in key states.

Lost votes

Anyone talking about the political weight of the “Fifth Switzerland” cannot avoid broaching the relatively charged subject of e-voting. Electronic voting is currently no longer possible in any canton. This means that many Swiss people, particularly those overseas, who are interested in politics, are effectively excluded from political participation in Switzerland. Their postal votes often do not reach Switzerland in time. SP representative Sandro Liniger says, “Without e-voting, turnout among the Swiss Abroad is around one-third lower than it is with e-voting.” SP International is therefore campaigning for e-voting to be introduced.

It is not alone in making this demand. The Swiss Abroad can exert their own pressure: the more they register to vote, the more urgently an answer is needed to the question of how exactly they are to exercise the political rights granted to them.

You can download the application form to register to vote here: revue.link/form