Swiss Federal ConstitutionThe Federal Constitution of the Swiss Confederation (SR 10; Bundesverfassung der Schweizerischen Eidgenossenschaft (BV); Constitution fédérale de la Confédération suisse (Cst.); Costituzione federale della Confederazione Svizzera (Cost.); ) of 18 April 1999 (SR 101) is the third and current federal constitution of Switzerland. It establishes the Swiss Confederation as a federal republic of 26 cantons (states).
Voting in SwitzerlandVoting in Switzerland (called votation) is the process by which Swiss citizens make decisions about governance and elect officials. The history of voting rights in Switzerland mirrors the complexity of the nation itself. The polling stations are opened on Saturdays and Sunday mornings but most people vote by post in advance. At noon on Sunday (Abstimmungssonntag in German, Dimanche de votation in French), voting ends and the results are usually known during the afternoon.
Popular initiative in SwitzerlandIn Switzerland, a popular initiative (German: Volksinitiative, French: Initiative populaire, Italian: Iniziativa popolare, Romansh: Iniziativa dal pievel) allows the people to suggest law on a national, cantonal, and municipal level. On a federal level it may only change the federal constitution, not propose an ordinary law. Along with the popular referendum and in some cantons recall elections, it is a form of direct democracy. Popular initiatives were introduced as a tool at the federal level in the 1891 partial revision of the Swiss Federal Constitution.
Direct democracyDirect democracy or pure democracy is a form of democracy in which the electorate decides on policy initiatives without elected representatives as proxies. This differs from the majority of currently established democracies, which are representative democracies. The theory and practice of direct democracy and participation as its common characteristic was the core of work of many theorists, philosophers, politicians, and social critics, among whom the most important are Jean Jacques Rousseau, John Stuart Mill, and G.
LandsgemeindeThe Landsgemeinde ("cantonal assembly"; ˈlantsɡəˌmaɪndə, plural Landsgemeinden) is a public, non-secret ballot voting system operating by majority rule, which constitutes one of the oldest forms of direct democracy. Still at use – in a few places – at the subnational political level in Switzerland, it was formerly practiced in eight cantons. For practical reasons, the Landsgemeinde has been abolished at the cantonal level in all but two cantons where it still holds the highest political authority: Appenzell Innerrhoden and Glarus.
