Re: Swiss elections and referenda - New Federal Councilor(s) election 7 December

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

Staying on the theme of the UDC, they should finally end their misery and elect a new leader on Saturday. Excepting a major surprise, it should be Ticino Conseiller aux États Marco Chiesa (a surprise victor lat October), who would become the first Latin leader of the country's most germanic party. In theory he comes from the standard hardline on immigration (unsurprising for a ticinese) and is close to the Blocher family. However, he does have a more "social" fibre, as befits a Latin politician. He actually used to run and EMS (care home) and has staked out a more moderate line on things like paternity leave or welfare spending. During the 2015-19 parliament he was rated as the most left-wing of the UDC's national council delegation.

In theory that might mean the UDC moving slightly leftwards on those sorts of issues, although in practice unlikely as the real decision making power still lies with the cantonal sections. Chiesa also doesn't speak particularly good German, which leads to the worry of the party being increasingly dominated by Christoph Blocher's daughter Magdalena.

Do you really use the word Latin to describe Italian-speaking Swiss in Switzerland? I find that totally odd.

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

Staying on the theme of the UDC, they should finally end their misery and elect a new leader on Saturday. Excepting a major surprise, it should be Ticino Conseiller aux États Marco Chiesa (a surprise victor lat October), who would become the first Latin leader of the country's most germanic party. In theory he comes from the standard hardline on immigration (unsurprising for a ticinese) and is close to the Blocher family. However, he does have a more "social" fibre, as befits a Latin politician. He actually used to run and EMS (care home) and has staked out a more moderate line on things like paternity leave or welfare spending. During the 2015-19 parliament he was rated as the most left-wing of the UDC's national council delegation.

In theory that might mean the UDC moving slightly leftwards on those sorts of issues, although in practice unlikely as the real decision making power still lies with the cantonal sections. Chiesa also doesn't speak particularly good German, which leads to the worry of the party being increasingly dominated by Christoph Blocher's daughter Magdalena.

Do you really use the word Latin to describe Italian-speaking Swiss in Switzerland? I find that totally odd.

I think he means Francophone too.

Ahhh in that sense I would understand.

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

- MEGASNIP -

Are those cantons' executives structured like the Federal Council? And is that so for all Swiss cantons?

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

- MEGASNIP -

Are those cantons' executives structured like the Federal Council? And is that so for all Swiss cantons?

It's the same in so far as it's a collective leadership, but the election is different. The precise rules vary, but the cantonal government are elected by popular vote. Basically, everyone gets 5 (or 7 in some cantons) votes and the 5 (or 7) candidates with the most votes get elected.

Uhm very interesting method. I like it. And are executives elected at the same time as the legislatures usually?

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

Yeah, I'm used to it, so I think it works well too. It still sort of requires politicians who viscerally hate each other to actually try and agree on stuff though, and the norm is that the government is usually subordinate to the parliament, so I'm not sure how well it would work in other countries

Usually they're the same time as the legislative elections - although some cantons say you can only be elected in the first round if you get a majority of the vote - so you wind up with a second round a few weeks later.

Then there are a couple of cantons that decide to hold their government elections at different times to the parliamentary ones, and one canton that elects their's every year at the Landsgemeinde, which is probably not technically a democratic way of doing it, but the canton in question is basically a toy-town tourist attraction rather than a real place where people actually live.

Oh I have heard about the magic institution of the Landsgemeinde in Appenzello Interno.

Why do you say it's "not technically a democratic way of doing it"?

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

Yeah, I'm used to it, so I think it works well too. It still sort of requires politicians who viscerally hate each other to actually try and agree on stuff though, and the norm is that the government is usually subordinate to the parliament, so I'm not sure how well it would work in other countries

Usually they're the same time as the legislative elections - although some cantons say you can only be elected in the first round if you get a majority of the vote - so you wind up with a second round a few weeks later.

Then there are a couple of cantons that decide to hold their government elections at different times to the parliamentary ones, and one canton that elects their's every year at the Landsgemeinde, which is probably not technically a democratic way of doing it, but the canton in question is basically a toy-town tourist attraction rather than a real place where people actually live.

Oh I have heard about the magic institution of the Landsgemeinde in Appenzello Interno.

Why do you say it's "not technically a democratic way of doing it"?

Well, the lack of a secret ballot is the big issue. The one in Glarus in particular has a habit of being surprisingly progressive in relation to what the canton is usually like, probably mostly because people don't want to go and stand in the town square and admit to hating foreigners, or muslims, or the poor

I see. The secret ballot is important, yes.

Loool @ social desirability bias in full display in Glarus.

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

So more Swiss people approve of same-sex marriage than Americans? And there is a bill which has been sitting there for seven years? Lmao

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

So basically Swiss politics is a good approximation of what American politics would look like with proportional representation?

In addition to the campaign finance stuff, I know no other countries with so many referendum questions/ballot initiatives/etc. popping up at every electoral cycle. Am I wrong?

Also trolololol at the shadowy UDC funding... the perfect definition of "unsurprising"

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

And now it's official. The Christian Democrats are dead, long live the Centre.

What happened?

Also you are late, I mean, your southern neighbours (oh hai) arrived there almost twenty-seven years ago.

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

And now it's official. The Christian Democrats are dead, long live the Centre.

What happened?

Also you are late, I mean, your southern neighbours (oh hai) arrived there almost twenty-seven years ago.

They approved the name change and the fusion with the BDP - so the latter dissapear from the political landscape and the other no longer mention Christian in their name.

And our politics are way too boring to ever have anything like mani pulite...

I see. Long live the Centre indeed.

Good for your politics then as the direct aftermath to mani pulite was Berlusconi...

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

Result coming in right now. Seems like we're heading to that situation in the multinationales responsables. A clear majority of the cantons saying no, but based on the current Tamedia/LeeWas projection, a bare majority of 50,4% the population voting Yes. Ouch.

Absolutely huge Röstigraben too, this time - 60%+ Yes votes in most of Romandie (Jura at 69% yes, it's just too beautiful for this country ) and only to German cantons voting Yes. Ticino voting Yes too; it's not right wing the way people think it is

Current maps on the RTS liveticker

The war material vote seems to be going down ~43%-57%, which is a pretty solid score all things considered

Ticinese #populism

Fick small German cantons for overturning the "Latin alliance" majority.

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

Not politics at all, but linguistic demographics, but it interested me.

From the latest release from the Federal Statistics Office a total of 68% of the population regularly use two or more language. 30% use at least three on a weekly basis.

Overall, one in three people live in a multilingual households (counting Alemannic and German as the same language). The most widely spoken languages at home are Swiss German (57%), French (28%), High German (16%) and Italian (8,8%). English is hot on the tail of Italian, with 7,5% using it as a home language. In total, one in two people, and 76% of the under 25s now use English on a weekly basis.

Waiting unhappily for the day English surpasses Italian

What other "foreign" languages are most spoken after English? Albanian? Arabic? Turkish?

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

(and fwiw, although muslims in Switzerland are generally well integrated and not particularly religious, the French suburbs just over the border with Genevado have, to be blunt, all of the socioeconomic issues and the demographics that French banlieues as a whole are infamous for, which does have an impact on let's say, Geneva's already complex relationship with it's neighbours. It may be the most woke city in the world, but it's also the most racist city in Switzerland).

Colour me shocked that a city with an overly woke reputation is actually full of racism as well, especially one overexposed to French Discourse.

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

Notably, women's votes prevented a restriction of abortion rights in 1978, passed the original law against racial discrimination, and stopped us privatising electricity.

??
I searched "abortion referendum Switzerland 1978" and I found a vote that was rejected 31-69. Pretty difficult that a majority of men voted in favour.

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

Notably, women's votes prevented a restriction of abortion rights in 1978, passed the original law against racial discrimination, and stopped us privatising electricity.

??
I searched "abortion referendum Switzerland 1978" and I found a vote that was rejected 31-69. Pretty difficult that a majority of men voted in favour.

Ha! Looks like good old RTS made a mistake. It was this one. From 1977

And even worse, I didn't read the text of the initiative - apparently women actually blocked abortion from being legalised in that particular vote (or more specifically, legalise it at the federal level, it was already legal in certain cantons by that point). In my defence, it was a long time before I was born, the article didn't go any details on what it was about, and this has long since ceased to be an issue that gets any particular attention

Swiss men tried to legislate on a women's issue against the wishes of Swiss women, but the latter stopped them.

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

Two different parties having an argument over who is truly representing a "bourgeois" political outlook sounds... very Swiss.

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

Ignacio Cassis was elected president of the Swiss confederation for 2022.

And with one voice, the nation called out: "who?"

His anonimity is exemplified by the fact that even you mistakenly used the Spanish spelling "Ignacio" for his name.

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

I love how Ticino (plus Italian parts of Grigioni) was by far the best place for the animal testing ban, something like ten points more in favour of it than anywhere else. It feels so random... and therefore, very Ticino.