Act on the Election of the Grand Council (Grand Council Election Act; GRWG) (Grossratswahlgesetz; GRWG) - Subject Matter, Scope (LEGC)

1. The law particularly regulates

a) the division of the canton into electoral districts and the allocation of municipalities to the electoral districts in the appendix;

b) the procedure for the distribution of seats in the Grand Council to the electoral districts;

c) the procedure for the election of the Grand Council according to the proportional representation system;

d) the representation in the Grand Council.

2. Unless otherwise specified by this law, the implementation of elections is governed by the law on political rights in the Canton of Graubünden, and for questions concerning the proportional representation system, the provisions of the Federal Act on Political Rights apply accordingly.

1. The Canton of Graubünden is divided into electoral districts for the election of the Great Council, as specified in the annex.

2. The allocation of municipalities to the electoral districts is regulated in the annex.

3. The affiliation to the electoral district of merging municipalities is to be regulated in the merger agreement. If important reasons oppose this regulation or if the municipalities cannot reach an agreement, the government makes a final decision. If more than one region is affected, these regions must be consulted beforehand.

1. For the allocation of the seats in the Grand Council to the electoral districts, the decisive factor is the permanent Swiss resident population of the electoral districts based on the federal statistics of the population and households (STATPOP), which is published in the year preceding the elections.

1. The 120 seats of the Grand Council shall be allocated to the electoral districts according to the following procedure

a) Preliminary Distribution

1. The Swiss resident population of the canton is divided by 120. The next highest whole number above the result forms the first distribution number. Each electoral district whose population does not reach this number receives a seat; it is excluded from further distribution.

2. The Swiss resident population of the remaining electoral districts is divided by the number of seats yet to be allocated. The next highest whole number above the result forms the second distribution number. Each electoral district whose population does not reach this number receives a seat; it is excluded from further distribution.

3. The procedure according to number 2 is repeated until a distribution number is found that all remaining electoral districts reach.

b) Main Distribution: Each remaining electoral district receives as many seats as the most recent distribution number is contained in its population number.

c) Remainder Distribution: The remaining seats are distributed among the electoral districts with the largest remainder numbers. If several electoral districts achieve the same remainder number, they are excluded in the order of the smallest remainders, which result from dividing their population number by the first distribution number. If the remainders are also equal, the decision is made by lot.

1. The government announces the number of representatives to be elected in each electoral district in the Cantonal Gazette in the year preceding the elections.

3. The contested deputies are permitted to assume office until the complaints have been resolved with final legal effect.

1. The government shall publish in the Cantonal Gazette, no later than the sixteenth Monday before the election day, the invitation to submit electoral proposals to the regional committee responsible for the electoral district.

1. A nomination list may contain no more names of eligible persons than there are members of the Grand Council to be elected in the electoral district, and no name may appear more than twice. If a nomination list contains more names, the last ones shall be deleted.

2. The nomination lists must specify for each proposed person

a) the official surname and given name;

b) the name under which the person is known politically or in everyday life;

c) the gender;

d) the date of birth;

e) the residential address;

f) the occupation.

3. Each proposed person must confirm in writing that they accept the nomination. If the confirmation is missing, their name shall be deleted.

1. Each nomination paper must bear a designation suitable for distinguishing it from other nomination papers.

1. Each nomination must be signed in handwriting by five eligible voters residing in the electoral district.

2. An eligible voter may not sign more than one nomination. Once the nomination has been submitted, the signature cannot be withdrawn.

3. The signatories shall designate one person as the representative of the nomination and another as their deputy. If they fail to do so, the first signatory is considered the representative, and the second signatory the deputy.

1. Nomination proposals must be received by the responsible regional committee for the electoral district no later than the twelfth Monday before the election day.

2. Nomination proposals submitted after this deadline will not be considered.

3. The regional committee shall immediately inform the State Chancellery of the submitted nomination proposals.

1. The election proposals and the names of the signatories can be inspected at the competent Regional Committee.

1. If the name of a proposed candidate appears on more than one nomination list within an electoral district, the responsible regional committee shall promptly remove it from all such nomination lists.

2. The Civil Registry Office shall immediately strike any candidates whose names appear on nomination lists from multiple electoral districts. It shall promptly inform the regional committees of the affected electoral districts about the removals.

1. The competent regional committee continuously reviews the submitted election proposals with regard to form requirements, the eligibility of the candidates, multiple candidacies, and the validity of the signatures.

2. In the event of deficiencies, a short deadline for rectification is immediately set for the representative of the election proposal.

3. Those proposed as replacements for officially removed persons must confirm in writing that they accept the election proposal.

4. If a deficiency is not remedied within the deadline, the election proposal is invalid. If the deficiency only concerns a proposed person, then only that person's name is removed.

5. After the eleventh Monday before the election day, the election proposals can no longer be changed. Reserved are the official invalidation of subsequently identified multiple candidacies and adjustments to the list designations pursuant to Article 16.

1. The revised electoral proposals are called lists. List connections are excluded.

2. The competent regional committee shall transmit the revised lists to the state chancery for publication in the cantonal official gazette no later than the eleventh Wednesday before the election day.

1. Lists with the same designation form a list group in the canton.

2. Lists are treated as a list group if

a) the representatives of the lists submit a corresponding written declaration to the State Chancellery no later than the eleventh Wednesday prior to the election day;

b) the lists originate from different electoral districts; and

c) the lists have the same designation.

3. If a list is submitted in only one electoral district, this list is also considered a list group.

4. The State Chancellery, in cooperation with the representatives of the lists, resolves discrepancies in list designations and in the formation of list groups. If no agreement is reached, the State Chancellery makes the decision.

1. Lists of the same list group shall be assigned the same list number.

2. The list number shall be drawn by lot by the Civil Registry Office. The drawing of lots is public.

3. The Civil Registry Office shall publish the list groups and the lists in the Cantonal Official Gazette.

1. The Office of the State Chancellery prepares ballots for all lists, on which the list designation, the order number, and the details of the candidates (surname and first name, year of birth, professional title, and place of residence) are preprinted, as well as a ballot without any preprint.

2. The Office of the State Chancellery prepares a brief voting guide before each election, which is distributed to eligible voters along with the ballots by the municipalities.

1. Each eligible voter has as many votes as there are members of the Grand Council to be elected in their electoral district.

2. They can only cast their vote for persons who have been validly nominated in their electoral district.

3. They may use an official pre-printed or blank ballot paper for this purpose. Filling out and making amendments must be done by hand.

1. Any person who uses a ballot without a pre-printed form may enter the names of eligible persons and indicate the list designation and/or the list number.

2. Any person who uses a ballot with a pre-printed form may strike through the printed names of candidates. They may enter the names of candidates from other lists within the electoral district (vote-splitting). Furthermore, they may cross out the pre-printed list number and designation or replace them with another.

3. The name of the same candidate may be listed no more than twice (accumulation).

1. Ballots are invalid if

a) they are not official;

b) they do not contain the name of a candidate from the electoral district;

c) they are filled out or altered in a manner other than by handwriting;

d) they contain defamatory statements or obvious marks;

e) in the case of postal voting, the regulations issued for this purpose are not observed.

2. The following invalid votes are to be eliminated from the ballot

a) Names of persons who are not listed in the electoral district;

b) Excessive repetitions, if the name of a candidate is listed more than twice.

3. If a ballot contains more names than there are seats to be allocated, the last pre-printed names not handwritten cumulatively are struck off, followed by the last handwritten names.

1. Each candidate listed on the ballot receives one candidate vote.

2. The sum of candidate votes and additional votes according to Article 23 constitutes the party votes for each list.

1. If a ballot contains fewer valid candidate votes than the number of members of the Grand Council to be elected in the constituency, the blank lines shall be considered additional votes for the list whose designation or order number is indicated on the ballot. If both the designation and order number are missing, or if the ballot contains more than one of the submitted list designations or order numbers, the blank lines do not count (empty votes).

2. Names not appearing on any list in the constituency will be deleted. However, they will be counted as additional votes if the ballot carries a list designation or order number. In the absence of such, these votes do not count (empty votes).

3. In the event of a discrepancy between the list designation and the order number, the list designation shall prevail.

1. The election office of each municipality is to determine the following values

a) the number of eligible voters and those who voted;

b) the number of valid, invalid, and blank ballots.

2. From the valid ballots are ascertained

a) the number of votes that the individual candidates have received (candidate votes);

b) the number of additional votes for each list;

c) the sum of candidate and additional votes for each list;

d) the number of blank votes.

3. These results are to be immediately transmitted electronically to the civil status office.

4. The election office of the municipality is required to record the results in a protocol, which must be submitted to the civil status office.

1. The election of the Grand Council shall be conducted according to the double proportional allocation of seats method.

2. The allocation of seats shall be carried out by the State Chancellery.

1. A list group participates in the distribution of seats only if its lists achieve a number of votes that corresponds to at least 3 percent of the total cantonal voter share.

1. The number of party votes for a list is divided by the number of seats to be allocated in the respective electoral district. The result is called the voter number of the list.

2. In each group of lists, the voter numbers of the lists are added together. The sum is divided by the cantonal election key and rounded to the nearest whole number. The result indicates the number of seats for the respective group of lists.

3. The cantonal chancellery calculates the cantonal election key such that 120 seats are allocated according to the procedure in Paragraph 2.

4. In the event of equally valid rounding options, the decision is made by drawing lots.

1. The number of party votes for a list is divided by the constituency divisor and the list group divisor, and then rounded to the nearest whole number. The result indicates the number of seats allocated to that list.

2. If the number of seats for the list with the most votes in a constituency is not at least one, it is increased to one (Majority Condition).

3. If applying the Majority Condition results in a conflict with paragraph 4, it must be restricted to the extent necessary to comply with the conditions of paragraph 4. If there are several equivalent options, the decision will be made by drawing lots.

4. The State Chancellery sets a constituency divisor for each constituency and a list group divisor for each list group such that, in accordance with paragraphs 1 to 3

a) each constituency receives the number of seats assigned to it according to Article 4;

b) each list group receives the number of seats allocated to it according to the overall allocation.

5. In the event of equivalent rounding options, the decision is made by drawing lots.

1. From each list, according to the number of seats achieved, the candidates who have received the most votes are elected.

2. The candidates who are not elected serve as substitutes for their list in the order of votes received.

3. In the event of a tie, the order is determined by lot.

1. If a list is allocated more seats than it has candidates, a supplementary election for the excess seats shall be held pursuant to Article 32.

1. If a person declines the election or if a member leaves the Grand Council before the end of their term of office, the State Chancellery declares the first substitute person elected. The decision is to be published in the Cantonal Official Gazette.

2. If a substitute person cannot or does not wish to take office, the next person in line assumes the position.

1. If a seat cannot be filled by succession, it shall be filled by the signatories of the electoral proposal (Art. 10) in the order of signature.

2. If this person fulfills the eligibility requirements, they shall be declared elected by the government. The decision shall be published in the Cantonal Gazette.

3. If completion through signatories of the electoral proposal is not possible, the government shall order a public election in the relevant electoral district.

4. A public election shall not take place if an officeholder departs from the Grand Council less than twelve months before the next regular Grand Council elections. In such a case, a replacement person shall take office according to the rules of temporary representation pursuant to Article 33.

5. If multiple seats are to be filled in a public election, the provisions for proportional representation apply; otherwise, those for majority voting apply.

6. If the proportional representation procedure is applied in an electoral district, the following special provisions apply

a) all lists are also considered as list groups;

b) a list participates in the allocation of seats only if it receives at least 3 percent of all party votes;

c) a sub-allocation is omitted, as each list group contains only one list.

1. If a member of the Grand Council is temporarily unable to take their seat, a substitute may take the position. The provisions regarding succession according to Article 31 apply mutatis mutandis.

2. If substitution through succession is not possible, it shall be carried out by the signatories of the electoral proposal (Art. 10) in the order of their signatures.

3. The substitution should be communicated to the competent regional committee as early as possible, which in turn immediately informs the council secretariat.