-
- Art. 5a FC
- Art. 6 FC
- Art. 10 FC
- Art. 16 FC
- Art. 17 FC
- Art. 20 FC
- Art. 22 FC
- Art. 29a FC
- Art. 30 FC
- Art. 32 FC
- Art. 42 FC
- Art. 43 FC
- Art. 43a FC
- Art. 55 FC
- Art. 56 FC
- Art. 60 FC
- Art. 68 FC
- Art. 75b FC
- Art. 77 FC
- Art. 96 para. 2 lit. a FC
- Art. 110 FC
- Art. 117a FC
- Art. 118 FC
- Art. 123b FC
- Art. 136 FC
- Art. 166 FC
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- Art. 11 CO
- Art. 12 CO
- Art. 50 CO
- Art. 51 CO
- Art. 84 CO
- Art. 143 CO
- Art. 144 CO
- Art. 145 CO
- Art. 146 CO
- Art. 147 CO
- Art. 148 CO
- Art. 149 CO
- Art. 150 CO
- Art. 701 CO
- Art. 715 CO
- Art. 715a CO
- Art. 734f CO
- Art. 785 CO
- Art. 786 CO
- Art. 787 CO
- Art. 788 CO
- Transitional provisions to the revision of the Stock Corporation Act of June 19, 2020
- Art. 808c CO
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- Art. 2 PRA
- Art. 3 PRA
- Art. 4 PRA
- Art. 6 PRA
- Art. 10 PRA
- Art. 10a PRA
- Art. 11 PRA
- Art. 12 PRA
- Art. 13 PRA
- Art. 14 PRA
- Art. 15 PRA
- Art. 16 PRA
- Art. 17 PRA
- Art. 19 PRA
- Art. 20 PRA
- Art. 21 PRA
- Art. 22 PRA
- Art. 23 PRA
- Art. 24 PRA
- Art. 25 PRA
- Art. 26 PRA
- Art. 27 PRA
- Art. 29 PRA
- Art. 30 PRA
- Art. 31 PRA
- Art. 32 PRA
- Art. 32a PRA
- Art. 33 PRA
- Art. 34 PRA
- Art. 35 PRA
- Art. 36 PRA
- Art. 37 PRA
- Art. 38 PRA
- Art. 39 PRA
- Art. 40 PRA
- Art. 41 PRA
- Art. 42 PRA
- Art. 43 PRA
- Art. 44 PRA
- Art. 45 PRA
- Art. 46 PRA
- Art. 47 PRA
- Art. 48 PRA
- Art. 49 PRA
- Art. 50 PRA
- Art. 51 PRA
- Art. 52 PRA
- Art. 53 PRA
- Art. 54 PRA
- Art. 55 PRA
- Art. 56 PRA
- Art. 57 PRA
- Art. 58 PRA
- Art. 59a PRA
- Art. 59b PRA
- Art. 59c PRA
- Art. 62 PRA
- Art. 63 PRA
- Art. 67 PRA
- Art. 67a PRA
- Art. 67b PRA
- Art. 75 PRA
- Art. 75a PRA
- Art. 76 PRA
- Art. 76a PRA
- Art. 90 PRA
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- Vorb. zu Art. 1 FADP
- Art. 1 FADP
- Art. 2 FADP
- Art. 3 FADP
- Art. 5 lit. f und g FADP
- Art. 6 Abs. 6 and 7 FADP
- Art. 7 FADP
- Art. 10 FADP
- Art. 11 FADP
- Art. 12 FADP
- Art. 14 FADP
- Art. 15 FADP
- Art. 19 FADP
- Art. 20 FADP
- Art. 22 FADP
- Art. 23 FADP
- Art. 25 FADP
- Art. 26 FADP
- Art. 27 FADP
- Art. 31 para. 2 lit. e FADP
- Art. 33 FADP
- Art. 34 FADP
- Art. 35 FADP
- Art. 38 FADP
- Art. 39 FADP
- Art. 40 FADP
- Art. 41 FADP
- Art. 42 FADP
- Art. 43 FADP
- Art. 44 FADP
- Art. 44a FADP
- Art. 45 FADP
- Art. 46 FADP
- Art. 47 FADP
- Art. 47a FADP
- Art. 48 FADP
- Art. 49 FADP
- Art. 50 FADP
- Art. 51 FADP
- Art. 54 FADP
- Art. 57 FADP
- Art. 58 FADP
- Art. 60 FADP
- Art. 61 FADP
- Art. 62 FADP
- Art. 63 FADP
- Art. 64 FADP
- Art. 65 FADP
- Art. 66 FADP
- Art. 67 FADP
- Art. 69 FADP
- Art. 72 FADP
- Art. 72a FADP
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- Art. 2 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 3 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 4 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 5 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 6 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 7 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 8 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 9 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 11 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 12 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 25 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 29 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 32 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 33 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 34 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
FEDERAL CONSTITUTION
CODE OF OBLIGATIONS
FEDERAL LAW ON PRIVATE INTERNATIONAL LAW
LUGANO CONVENTION
CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
CIVIL PROCEDURE CODE
FEDERAL ACT ON POLITICAL RIGHTS
CIVIL CODE
FEDERAL ACT ON CARTELS AND OTHER RESTRAINTS OF COMPETITION
FEDERAL ACT ON INTERNATIONAL MUTUAL ASSISTANCE IN CRIMINAL MATTERS
DEBT ENFORCEMENT AND BANKRUPTCY ACT
FEDERAL ACT ON DATA PROTECTION
SWISS CRIMINAL CODE
CYBERCRIME CONVENTION
- I. History of origins
- II. Significance of the provision
- III. Preparation and delivery of ballot papers
- Bibliography
- Materials
I. History of origins
1 It was not until the enactment of the Federal Act on Political Rights in 1976 that the cantons were obliged to produce ballot papers for all lists at their own expense and to send them to voters. Until then, in some cantons this had been the responsibility of the parties, which often meant that voters were not in possession of all the lists - a clear restriction of their freedom of choice. The provision on the admission of "registration vouchers" (Art. 33 para. 1bis) was included in the PRA with the 1994 revision. Finally, with the 2014 revision, the deadline for delivery of the electoral material to voters was brought forward. They now receive the documents (as in the case of referendums) at the earliest four and at the latest three weeks before the day of the ballot.
II. Significance of the provision
A. General
2 The provision states that the cantons are responsible for the production and distribution of ballot papers. They must send, at their own expense, a complete set of the ballot papers of all lists and a blank ballot paper without a form to all eligible voters in the fourth to last week before polling day.
B. Legal comparison
3 The cantons have fundamentally comparable regulations in their parliamentary election law. In the case of cantonal parliamentary elections, it is also the responsibility of the authorities to produce a complete set of ballot papers from all lists and a ballot paper without a pre-printed form and to send them to voters. The costs are borne by the cantons. The prescribed details of the candidates on the pre-printed ballot papers are the surnames and first names, year of birth, occupational title and place of residence. The last date for delivery of the electoral material to voters is sometimes closer to election day. Few cantons have rules comparable to Art. 33 para. 4 PRA concerning additional pre-printed ballot papers.
III. Preparation and delivery of ballot papers
A. Responsibility of the cantons (para. 1)
4 It is the responsibility of the cantons to produce the ballot papers for the National Council elections at their own expense.
5 All ballot papers must show a designation of the election in question (e.g. National Council elections 2023 or National Council elections of 22 October 2023), which - probably because it goes without saying - has not been specifically regulated.
6 The ballot paper block or the ballot paper booklet contains pre-printed ballot papers for all lists and a ballot paper without pre-print. These constitute official ballot papers within the meaning of Art. 5 para. 2 PRA. The ballot paper without pre-print does not contain any list designation or number and no names of candidates or candidate numbers. It contains only blank lines or boxes, which are to be filled in by hand by the eligible voters. It shall contain as many blank lines as there are mandates to be allocated in the constituency.
7 The pre-printed ballot papers must contain the list designations (including list abbreviations), the list order number and the reference to any list connections and sub-list connections of the list in question (cf. Art. 31 para. 2 PRA). Each candidate shall receive a candidate number consisting of the list number, the list position number and (if applicable) a check digit. The candidates' surnames and first names as well as their place of residence are mandatory. The name by which the person is known politically or in everyday life will regularly be given (art. 22 para. 2 let. b PRA). The above information is the minimum required under federal law. The cantons may print further information about the candidates on the ballot paper. In particular, the year of birth, job titles or political offices and the note "previously" in the case of re-candidates are common. If a list (including the pre-cumulative candidates) has fewer candidates than there are mandates to be allocated in the constituency, blank lines or boxes shall be printed for the list positions that are not filled.
8 Art. 7 VPR requires that sufficient space be left free on pre-printed ballot papers to enable the electorate to make the process of variegation and cumulation easily legible. This requirement, which makes sense and is necessary in practice, is a challenge, especially in large cantons with many mandates to be allocated. For this reason, individual cantons have set limits for the (sometimes overflowing) professional titles.
B. Registration documents (para. 1bis)
9 According to this provision, inserted in 1994, the cantons may use machine-readable ballot papers, so-called registration slips, in National Council elections. Machine-readable ballot papers, such as those used in the canton of Ticino for cantonal and communal elections, serve as an example. If a canton sends out such registration documents to voters, it must also send them a compilation (overview) with the minimum information on lists and candidates required under paragraph 1 (containing the complete list designations, references to list connections and sub-list connections, as well as the minimum candidate information such as surnames and first names and place of residence). The use of machine-readable ballot papers in National Council elections would also have to be approved by the Federal Council in accordance with Art. 84 para. 2 PRA. In practice, this provision has not played a role so far. No canton used such recording documents in National Council elections.
C. Complete set of all ballot papers (para. 2)
10 The cantons must send a complete set of all ballot papers to eligible voters at least three and no earlier than four weeks before election day. The electoral material must reach those entitled to vote in the fourth to last week before election day. With the revision of the law in 2014, the deadline for the delivery of the election material was brought into line with the deadline that has been in force for a long time for referendums. The new regulation is made possible by limiting the time window for the election registration deadline to a Monday in August (cf. Art. 21 para. 1 PRA). According to the previously applicable regulation of 1976, ballot papers had to be sent to voters no later than ten days before election day.
11 In addition to the ballot papers and the voting instructions (Art. 34 PRA), the cantons are free to send the electoral advertising material of the parties and groups to the eligible voters (with the dispatch of the official material or in a separate dispatch). Some cantons have such a practice (e.g. BE, FR, AG, SO, JU). All parties and candidate groups are to be treated equally. In order not to let the weight of the election documents to be sent get out of hand and to limit the mailing costs, a weight limit is sometimes set for the advertising leaflets.
D. Additional ballot papers (para. 3)
12 The parties and candidate groups (in the wording, impractical: "the signatories") may obtain additional ballot papers with pre-printed copies of their lists from the cantonal state chancelleries at cost price. They can distribute these during the election campaign or, if a canton is aware of the state's election advertising material dispatch, have them enclosed with the propaganda material sent out, if necessary.
13 One may ask whether the distribution of additional pre-printed ballot papers to the parties is still in keeping with the times. The provision can be explained by looking back to a time when in some cantons the parties were still responsible for distributing the ballot papers. Today, the mailing of the official ballot paper block with all lists to the eligible voters must suffice. From the point of view of equal treatment, it also seems somewhat questionable if parties that are willing and able to finance this are given the opportunity to distribute additional official ballot papers of their lists. And for voters in cantons where advertising material is sent out, it is sometimes confusing (and not understood by them) if they find the same official ballot paper of a list twice in the election material, once bound in the official ballot paper block and once loose as an enclosure to the advertising leaflet of a list.
Bibliography
Hangartner Yvo/Kley Andreas/Braun Binder Nadja/Glaser Andreas, Die demokratischen Rechte in Bund und Kantonen der Schweizerischen Eidgenossenschaft, 2. Aufl., Zürich 2023.
Muheim Anton, Wahl des Nationalrates, in: Das Bundesgesetz über die politischen Rechte, Veröffentlichungen des Schweizerischen Instituts für Verwaltungskurse an der Hochschule St. Gallen, St. Gallen 1978, S. 65–89.
Materials
Beschluss 784/2021 des Regierungsrates des Kantons Bern vom 23.6.2021 über die Durchführung der Grossratswahlen vom 27.3.2022.
Beschluss 314/2023 des Regierungsrates des Kantons Bern vom 22.3.2023 über die Durchführung der Nationalratswahlen vom 22.10.2023.
Beschluss 2023/167 des Regierungsrats des Kantons Solothurn vom 31.1.2023 über die Nationalratswahlen vom 22.10.2023. Einberufung der Wahlberechtigten und Verfahren.
Botschaft des Bundesrates an die Bundesversammlung zu einem Bundesgesetz über die politischen Rechte vom 9.4.1975 (BBl 1975 I 1317).
Botschaft des Bundesrates über eine Teiländerung der Bundesgesetzgebung über die politischen Rechte vom 1.9.1993 (BBl 1993 III 445).
Botschaft des Bundesrates zur Änderung des Bundesgesetzes über die politischen Rechte vom 29.11.2013 (BBl 2013 9217).
Information der Staatskanzlei Aargau vom 23.3.2023 zu den Nationalratswahlen 2023: Anleitung zum Wahlvorschlag.
Kreisschreiben des Bundesrates an die Kantonsregierungen vom 30.11.2018 über die Ermittlung der Ergebnisse eidgenössischer Volksabstimmungen mit technischen Mitteln (BBl 2018 S. 7683) (zit. Kreisschreiben BR 2018)
Kreisschreiben des Bundesrates an die Kantonsregierungen vom 19.10.2022 über die Gesamterneuerungswahl des Nationalrates vom 22.10.2023 (BBl 2022 S. 2547) (zit. Kreisschreiben BR NRW 2023).
Leitfaden der Bundeskanzlei für kandidierende Gruppierungen für die Nationalratswahlen vom 20.10.2023.