Ordinance on Political Rights (VpR) - Acquisition of Voting Rights on Election or Referendum Day G § 3 (VpR)

1. Votes submitted by letter or in advance are only counted if the voters are registered in the electoral register on the day of the election or vote.

1. The exclusion from voting rights commences with the finality of the judgment.

1. A person who is temporarily and incidentally present at a location, or clearly there only for the purposes of voting, is not entitled to vote.

1. Voting Rights and Voting Domicile are not established by

a) the serving of a sentence in a penal institution;

b) residence in a labor or educational institution;

c) residence in a retirement or nursing home.

2. A political domicile that does not correspond to the civil law one may be held, in particular by

a)* persons under comprehensive guardianship;

b) temporary residents, specifically students;

c) married individuals who, with the consent of their spouse, by judicial order, or based on immediate legal authority, reside outside the joint household with the intention of a permanent stay.

1. The specific eligibility requirements (diplomas, certificates of competence) are to be established in the legislation or in the municipal or intercommunal association regulations.

1. The municipalities maintain the electoral register electronically.

2. The electoral register for Swiss citizens abroad is maintained in a central database of the canton.

3. The minimum content of the electoral register is determined by the Federal Register Harmonization Act (Article 6 RHG in conjunction with § 5 RegV).

4. Before each ballot, the electoral register official records the number of eligible voters as well as the number of eligible Swiss citizens at home and abroad, broken down by men and women.

1. Changes in voting eligibility must be made immediately.

2. The civil registry officers must continuously report incoming and outgoing citizens, who are Swiss nationals over 18 years old, and deceased eligible voters to the voting register officers of the residential community.

3. They must inform in due time if residents who are Swiss nationals reach the age of 18, or if foreign residents in the community acquire Swiss citizenship.

4. These notifications must also be made to the voting register officers of the municipal or church communities if they concern local citizens or members of the religious community, respectively.

5. The adult protection authorities must inform the voting register officers of the relevant municipalities (residential, municipal, and church) when they have legally established or dissolved comprehensive guardianship for persons who are permanently incapable of judgment.

6. The voting register officer must report a person, who is excluded from voting rights and moves out of the community, to the competent out-of-canton authority or office.

1. Changes in the voter register must be identified as such and specifically noted.

1. No person shall be registered on the electoral roll in two similar municipalities simultaneously.

2. The electoral roll officer must, if necessary, verify voting eligibility with the authorities of the municipality of origin, with additional residential municipalities, or with other authorities (courts, adult protection authorities, etc.).

1. A person who is refused enrollment in the electoral register or against whose enrollment a complaint is filed, shall be granted the right to be heard.

1. The following are considered valid identification under § 10 of the Act

a) for proving voting eligibility or disqualification from voting, certifications from the competent authorities;

b) for proving the right to vote at the location

1.* in the resident community: proof of registration for residency;

2.* in the citizen community: proof of citizenship and registration for residency;

3. in the church community: the identification mentioned under item a, and proof of religious affiliation.

2. As identification under § 14 paragraph 2 of the Act, the voting rights certificate from the former municipality of residence, on which departure and the non-exercise of the electoral and voting rights are officially certified, may be presented.

1. The polling stations are entrusted with the same responsibilities for elections of special-purpose associations to which the municipality belongs.

1. Any member of an electoral office who is unable to perform their duties must provide a timely excuse to the president before the commencement of the voting process. The president is then responsible for enlisting substitute members.

1. The polling station and the working room of the municipal central election offices should be located in a public building (e.g., school or community center).

1. If elections or votes are conducted simultaneously in the residential community, the civic community, or in a church community of the same locality, the joint use of the polling station or voting booth is permitted. However, the different polling offices must be clearly marked and set up at a spatial distance from each other.

1. Lost voting certificates will be replaced for a fee and will become invalid. The replacement certificate must be designated as such.

1. The Municipal Vice President shall not be elected on the same day as the Municipal Council.

1. Publication of the voting and election day and the summoning of eligible voters shall occur

a) by the governmental council in the official gazette;

b) by the head of the local administrative authority in publication organs that are delivered free of charge to all households (district bulletins), in the case of elections for district and local officials, also in the official gazette;

c) at the discretion of the municipal council

1. in publication organs delivered to all households (district bulletins);

2. or with a written invitation sent by mail to all eligible voters.

1. At the State Chancellery, the district offices, and in municipalities that have full-time staff, the submitted election proposals can be inspected during regular office hours.

2. In other municipalities, the proposals are made available for inspection daily for at least 2 hours. The place and time of inspection must either be specified in the municipal regulations or publicly announced before each election.

1. If an electoral list contains names of persons who are residents of another district, the submitting office must determine from the competent senior office whether those persons are already included on an electoral list there.

1. The lists and candidates' names shall be published immediately after rectification as follows

a) for the National Council elections: by the State Chancellery in the Official Gazette;

b) for the Cantonal Council elections: by the State Chancellery in the Official Gazette;

c) for cantonal majority elections in the first and second ballots: by the State Chancellery in the Official Gazette;

d) for municipal elections: by the municipal administration in the municipality's publication organ or by public posting.

1. A grouping may submit multiple electoral proposals under the same name, which must be distinguished from one another by an addition.

2. If the distinguishing feature in sub-list connections does not relate to the regional delimitation of the lists, the grouping designates an electoral proposal as the primary list. The additional votes on inadequately marked ballots are attributed to this primary list.

1. The ballot paper contains the designation of the election and as many blank lines as there are positions to be filled.

2. The information sheet contains the candidates' names in alphabetical order, the designation of the party or group to which the candidate belongs, and, if applicable, the note 'incumbent'.

1. The municipalities obtain delivery envelopes from the State Chancellery with timely ordering and for a fee.

1. Parties and eligible voters may obtain the official election and voting materials for federal and cantonal elections, as well as for district and regional official elections, directly from the State Chancellery upon payment.

2. The State Chancellery generally supplies the official election and voting materials only in larger quantities. It may require an advance payment of costs.

1. Election propaganda materials must not exceed the A5 format and must weigh no more than 50 grams. They must be submitted to the municipal offices in a number of copies sufficient to accommodate all eligible voters.

1. The submission deadline is considered met only if the electoral propaganda material is received by the municipal office within the prescribed time. Timely handing over to the postal service is not sufficient.

1. The mayor or the president of the municipality is responsible for ensuring that the official election and voting materials, as well as the election propaganda materials transmitted to the municipality for dispatch within the deadline, are delivered in a timely manner.

1. If the parties intend to conduct silent proportional elections, they must also designate candidates for substitute membership in their electoral proposals.

2. In the absence of such designations, the parties shall be required by the submission office to submit additional electoral proposals.

3. The candidates for substitute membership must be listed in the order in which they are to assume office in case of replacement.

4. If the silent election does not take place, the persons designated for substitute membership assume the position of regular candidates.

1. The determination of silent elections that have taken place, the designation of the lists, and the names of the elected individuals are to be published in accordance with § 21.

1. The electoral and voting materials shall be provided or delivered free of charge.

1. Envelopes with unsigned voting rights certificates are counted as "not voted" or "not elected".

1. Sick or disabled persons who are unable to make the preparations for postal voting themselves must appoint a person they trust who is eligible to vote. The trusted person shall complete the ballot paper or voting slip as designated and desired by them, following their instructions and in their presence.

2. If the voting authorization certificate cannot be personally signed, the trusted person must provide their name, residential address, and personal signature.

1. The polling process shall not commence before the designated time.

2. The polling stations must close promptly at the specified time; eligible voters present may still exercise their right to vote.

1. In the case of early voting, access to the ballot box or the voting station must be provided for at least one hour per day.

1. Before the first opening of the ballot boxes, the election office must ascertain that the ballot boxes are empty.

1. The election office shall periodically verify the issued ballots and voting papers and provide replacements if necessary.

1. The ballot boxes shall be sealed or locked and reopened in the presence of the assembled election committee. The seal or sealing tool, the key to the room, and the key to the box must be kept by election committee members belonging to at least two different parties.

2. Before the sealed or locked ballot box is opened, the election committee must verify that the seal or lock is intact.

1. The polling station may require voters who remain in the voting booth, polling station, or its access areas for an unnecessarily long time in an abusive manner to leave the premises.

1. Voting by Swiss citizens abroad may be conducted electronically in accordance with federal law.

2. The vote is invalid if it

a) is not sent in the prescribed format and encryption;

b) does not arrive in the electronic ballot box by the deadline published by the State Chancellery;

c) cannot be correctly decrypted and read;

d) is conducted fraudulently.

3. Moreover, the provisions of the legislation on political rights shall apply.

1. The electronic ballot closes on the Saturday before the election day at 12:00 noon Swiss time. This corresponds to Central European Time (CET) plus one hour during daylight saving time.

1. ...

1bis. For federal polls, only preparatory actions (sorting, checking voting certificates, and separating them from the ballot papers) may be carried out on the day before the poll.

2. If the counting of postal votes during cantonal, regional, or municipal polls begins at 6:00 PM on the day before the poll, the election office must take all necessary measures to ensure the confidentiality of the results.

3. The postal votes submitted on preceding days must be counted by at least two election office members who belong to different political parties.

1. The electoral office decides, subject to the right of appeal, on the invalidity of the election and ballot papers.

1. In ballots with excess names, the valid candidates' names are to be determined by counting the names from top to bottom until the number of mandates is reached.

2. If more than one column is present, the counting shall start on the left side and continue on the right side.

1. The election and voting records are prepared by the State Chancellery for federal and cantonal polling, by the Prefecture for regional polling, and by the municipality for local polling.

2. The election and voting records must be signed by all members of the polling office, and those of the districts and prefectures must be signed by the head or deputy head of the Prefecture in the name of the regional polling office. The head of the Prefecture may designate professional staff who are authorized to sign the election and voting records of the districts and prefectures in the name of the regional polling office.

3. Decisions made by the polling office regarding the validity of ballots, voting in the absence of a voter registry entry, and voting by new arrivals must be recorded in the election and voting records.

1. The polling offices record in the election protocol

a) the number of eligible voters and actual voters;

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

c) the number of votes received by each candidate on each list (candidate votes);

d) the number of additional votes for each list;

e) the sum of candidate and additional votes for each list (party votes);

f) for the joint lists, the total number of votes allocated to the list group;

g) the number of blank votes.

1. The polling stations record in the voting protocol

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

b) the number of blank, invalid, and valid votes;

c) the votes for and against.

1. Once the record has been created, the assembled electoral office is required to separately package and seal the valid, invalid, and blank ballots, as well as the voting certificates. The packages must be labeled with the election or vote, the date, and the contents.

1. In federal and cantonal elections and referendums, the municipal election offices or central municipal election offices must immediately report the determined municipal results to the district offices.

2. The district offices then establish the district results and immediately report these to the state chancery.

1. The election office responsible for evaluating the election results conducts the drawing of lots.

2. A record of the drawing of lots must be made. The result of the drawing of lots is to be recorded in the protocol.

1. The results of the elections at the cantonal and regional level, along with the validation by the Cantonal and Government Council and the head of the Oberamt, shall be published in the Official Gazette.

2. The results of the elections at the municipal level, along with the validation by the Municipal Council or the Municipal Parliament, shall be published in the municipality's publication medium or by public posting.

1. The voting results at the cantonal and regional levels, along with the government council's determination regarding the acceptance or rejection of a proposal, shall be published in the official gazette; the voting results at the municipal level and the determination of the municipal presidency shall be published in the municipality's publication medium or through a public notice.

1. The seal used for sealing is to be kept by a person who does not have access to the ballot and voting paper packages. This person should not belong to the same party as those who have access to the ballot and voting paper packages.

1. The certificate is issued with the following formula: The undersigned official certifies that the ... (number) signatories of this list (or the lists No. 1 to ...) have their voting domicile in the municipality and are entitled to vote in cantonal matters.

2. In case of refusal to issue the certificate, the reason must be noted.

1. This regulation shall enter into force on January 1, 1997. The right of objection by the Cantonal Council is reserved.