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Constitution of the Canton of Valais, (1907)
Table of Provisions (107)
Statutory Text (107 Articles)
Valais is a democratic republic, sovereign within the limits of the Federal Constitution, and incorporated as a Canton into the Swiss Confederation.
Sovereignty resides with the people. It is exercised directly by the voters and indirectly by the constituted authorities.
Freedom of conscience, belief, and the free exercise of worship are guaranteed.
Religious communities define their doctrine and organize their worship independently. They organize and manage themselves autonomously, within the limits of public law.
The status of a legal entity under public law is recognized for the Roman Catholic Church and the Reformed Evangelical Church. Other denominations are subject to the rules of private law; the law may grant them a public law status to account for their significance on the cantonal level.
To the extent that the parishes of the Roman Catholic Church and those of the Reformed Evangelical Church cannot, by their own means, cover the worship expenses of local churches, these expenses are, subject to the freedoms of conscience and belief, borne by the municipal communes. The canton may allocate subsidies to the churches recognized under public law.
The law governs the application of these provisions.
All citizens are equal before the law.
In Valais, there is no privilege based on place, birth, person, or family. a In the Constitution, all references to a person, status, or function apply equally to both men and women.
Individual freedom and the inviolability of the home are guaranteed.
No one may be prosecuted or arrested, and no domiciliary visit may be made, except in cases provided for by the law and in the manner it prescribes.
The State is obliged to fairly compensate any person who is a victim of a judicial error or an illegal arrest. The law regulates the application of this principle.
No one may be deprived of their natural judge.
Property is inviolable.
This principle can only be derogated for reasons of public utility, provided a fair indemnity is given and in the forms prescribed by law.
However, the law may, for reasons of public utility, determine cases of expropriation, without indemnity, of bourgeois and communal lands.
No real estate may be burdened with an irredeemable perpetual charge.
The freedom to express one's opinion verbally or in writing, as well as the freedom of the press, are guaranteed. The law punishes abuses.
The right of petition is guaranteed. The law regulates its exercise.
The right of free establishment, association, and assembly, the free exercise of liberal professions, and the freedom of commerce and industry are guaranteed.
The exercise of these rights is regulated by law.
Every citizen is obligated to perform military service.
The enforcement of this principle is governed by federal and cantonal legislation.
The French language and the German language are declared national languages.
Equal treatment between the two languages must be observed in legislation and administration.
Public education and private primary education are placed under the direction and high supervision of the State.
Primary education is mandatory; it is free in public schools.
The freedom of teaching is guaranteed, subject to the legal provisions concerning primary school.
The State must provide the family, the basic community of society, with the protection and support it requires so that each of its members can thrive.
It examines the legislation from the perspective of its effects on the family's living conditions and adapts it accordingly.
The State enacts regulations concerning worker protection and ensuring freedom of work.
The State issues regulations concerning protection against large predators as well as the limitation and regulation of their population. The promotion of the population of large predators is prohibited.
The State encourages and subsidizes, within the limits of its financial resources: a. agriculture, industry, commerce, and, in general, all branches of the public economy that concern the Canton; b. professional education related to commerce, industry, agriculture, and the arts and crafts; c. livestock breeding, the dairy industry, viticulture, arboriculture, alpine economy, soil improvement, forestry, and agricultural and professional unions.
The State organizes and subsidizes livestock insurance.
It may create other types of insurance, particularly compulsory insurance for movable and immovable property against fire.
The State promotes the development of the network of roads and other means of communication. It contributes subsidies for the embankment of the Rhône, as well as for the embankment and correction of rivers and torrents.
The State establishes or supports through subsidies educational establishments for unfortunate children and other charitable institutions.
The State must promote and subsidize the establishment of hospitals, clinics, and district or regional infirmaries.
It may also create a similar cantonal establishment.
The financial participation of the State in the cases provided for in Articles 15, 16, 17, 18, and 19 is regulated by special laws.
The State, the municipalities, and the associations of municipalities endowed with the legal personality of public law are liable towards third parties for the acts of their agents.
The agent is liable towards the public entity they serve for direct or indirect damage caused in the exercise of their functions, due to intentional wrongdoing or gross negligence.
The law governs the application of these principles.
A public official or employee may only be dismissed or revoked after having been heard or summoned, and based on a reasoned decision by the authority that appointed them.
The expenses of the State are covered: a. by the revenues of public assets; b. by the proceeds from regal rights; c. by fiscal duties and various revenues; d. by federal indemnities, subsidies, and allocations; e. by taxes.
The taxes of the State and the communes are determined by law. This law shall establish the principle of progression and exemption of a certain minimum of existence.
The State's budget must present a surplus of revenues and a surplus of financing ensuring investments and participations in investments of third parties necessary for the harmonious development of the canton and allowing for the guarantee of amortizing any possible deficit on the balance sheet, as well as debt amortization.
If the account deviates from the budget and presents a surplus of expenses or insufficient financing, the amortization of these deficits must be provided for in the budget of the second subsequent fiscal year.
The Council of State proposes to the Grand Council, before the publication of the budget proposal, the amendments to the legal provisions that do not fall within its own competence and that are necessary to comply with this principle.
These amendments are adopted by the Grand Council, by means of a decree, in the same session in which it approves the budget.
The legislation regulates the application of the principles set forth in this article. It may provide for exceptions according to the economic situation or in the event of natural disasters or other extraordinary events.
The Canton is divided into districts.
The districts are composed of municipalities.
The Grand Council may, after consulting stakeholders, modify the number and boundaries of the districts through a law and those of the municipalities through a decree.
It also designates the district capitals.
Sion is the capital of the Canton and the seat of the Grand Council, the Council of State, and the Cantonal Court. However, these bodies may convene elsewhere if serious circumstances require it. The decree of December 1, 1882, determines the benefits of the capital. When establishing cantonal institutions, consideration must be given to the various parts of the Canton. The municipality that becomes the seat of a cantonal institution may be obligated to provide contributions.
Citizens of Valais are: a. citizens who belong to a municipality of the canton by virtue of birth; b. those who have been granted naturalisation in accordance with cantonal legislation.
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Every citizen of the canton may acquire the right of citizenship in other municipal communes, under the conditions established by law.
In addition to the competences regarding elections, polls, and mandatory referendums in constitutional matters, citizens enjoy the rights of initiative and optional referendum.
The law regulates the exercise of these rights as well as the procedures for citizen consultation and information.
Three thousand active citizens may request within ninety days following the official publication that the following be submitted to a popular vote: a. laws and decrees; b. agreements, treaties, and conventions containing rules of law; c. decisions of the Grand Council involving a one-time extraordinary expenditure exceeding 0.75 percent or a periodic expenditure exceeding 0.25 percent of the total expenditure of the operating account and the investment account of the last fiscal year.
A referendum may also be requested by the majority of the Grand Council.
Not submitted to a popular vote are: a. implementing laws (Art. 42, para. 2); b. ordinary expenditures and other decisions.
The Grand Council shall declare the nullity of referendum requests that do not meet the conditions stipulated by the Constitution and by the law.
Laws, treaties, concordats, conventions, or decisions submitted to a referendum cannot be enforced before the expiration of the referendum period, nor, if applicable, before the vote of the people.
Decrees are enforced immediately. They are submitted to a vote by the people within the following year, if three thousand active citizens or the majority of the Grand Council demand it. If they have not been ratified, they lose their validity and cannot be renewed.
Four thousand active citizens may request the drafting, adoption, amendment, or repeal of a law, decree, or any decision subject to a referendum, except for laws, decrees, and decisions voted on by the people within the last four years, decisions already executed, and decrees with a validity of less than one year.
Except in cases provided for in Art. 34, para. 2, and Art. 35, para. 1, any popular initiative must be submitted to a public vote within three years following its submission. This deadline may be extended by a maximum of one year through a decision of the Grand Council.
The Grand Council shall declare null any initiative that: a. does not comply with federal law or the cantonal Constitution; b. targets more than one subject; c. does not respect the unity of form; d. is unfeasible; e. does not fall within the scope of an act that can be the subject of an initiative.
When an initiative request would lead to new expenses or the elimination of existing revenues that jeopardize financial balance, the Grand Council must complement the initiative by proposing new resources, reducing tasks incumbent on the State, or other cost-saving measures.
The initiative may be drafted entirely from scratch, except if it is aimed at a decision. If the Grand Council adheres to it, voting will only take place at the request of three thousand active citizens or the majority of the Grand Council. If the Grand Council does not adhere to it, it must submit the initiative as is to a public vote, but it may recommend its rejection or also propose a counter-project. When the Grand Council adopts a counter-project, citizens are invited to answer the following three questions on the same ballot: a. do you accept the popular initiative? b. do you accept the counter-project? c. if both texts obtain the absolute majority of the validly voting electorate, should it be the initiative or the counter-project that comes into force?
The initiative conceived in general terms is implemented by the Grand Council, which decides whether the provisions it adopts or modifies will appear in the Constitution or in a legislative or administrative act; when the initiative is implemented in a legislative or administrative act, it is submitted to a vote only if three thousand active citizens or the majority of the Grand Council request it.
When the Grand Council does not approve the initiative, it submits it as it is to the vote of the people, with its recommendation.
If the people reject it, it is dismissed.
If the people accept it, the Grand Council is obliged to act on it without delay.
In drafting the regulations demanded by the unspecified initiative, the Grand Council respects the intentions of its authors.
The public authorities are: a. the legislative power; b. the executive and administrative power; c. the judicial power.
The Grand Council exercises legislative power, subject to the rights of the people.
It enjoys any other competence attributed to it by the Constitution or the law.
The Grand Council drafts the constitutional provisions, the laws, and the decrees, with Articles 31 to 35 and 100 to 106 being reserved.
It approves treaties, concordats, and conventions, subject to the competencies of the people and the Council of State.
It exercises the rights reserved to the cantons by Articles 86, 89, 89 bis, and 93 of the federal constitution and responds to consultations from the Confederation regarding atomic installations.
The Grand Council decides on the validity of the elections of its members.
It elects the Cantonal Court, its president and vice-president, as well as the members of the Office of the Public Prosecutor.
The Grand Council exercises high oversight over the management of the Council of State, corporations and autonomous public law institutions, judicial authorities, as well as over the state's representatives in companies where the canton has a predominant participation. It examines the management and deliberates on its approval.
It may at any time call upon the executive authority to account for an act of its administration.
The law may assign certain state tasks to corporations or autonomous public law institutions.
The Grand Council has the following powers in particular: a. it approves the budget and approves the accounts, which are made public; b. it participates in planning to the extent determined by law; c. it decides on expenditures and authorizes concessions, real estate transactions, loans, and the granting of sureties and other similar guarantees, except as provided by law; d. it sets the remuneration of magistrates, civil servants, and state employees, except as provided by law; e. it exercises the right of pardon.
The Grand Council enacts rules of law in the form of a law, which is, in principle, enacted for an unlimited duration. However, it may provide that the law is enacted for a limited period.
It enacts, in the form of an implementing law, the provisions absolutely necessary to ensure the execution of superior law.
However, it may take urgent measures by way of decree, for a limited period, when circumstances require (art. 32, para. 2).
The Grand Council handles all other matters in the form of a decision.
The law establishes the general framework for the organization of the Grand Council along with its relations with the Council of State and the judicial authorities. For the rest, the Grand Council organizes itself.
It regulates the participation of the members of the Council of State in the sessions of the assembly and the parliamentary committees.
The Grand Council convenes by right: a. in a constitutive session on the seventh Monday following its complete renewal; b. in ordinary sessions, at the times fixed by law.
The Grand Council convenes in extraordinary sessions: a. when it specifically decides to do so; b. upon the invitation of the Council of State; c. when twenty deputies request it, specifying the matters to be addressed.
The Grand Council elects a president and two vice-presidents for one year.
The Grand Council has an independent parliamentary service.
The Grand Council designates commissions, either permanent or temporary, to prepare its deliberations. This authority may be delegated to the bureau.
Deputies may form political groups, which must have at least five members.
In principle, political groups should be fairly represented in the commissions.
The Grand Council can only deliberate if the absolute majority of its members are present.
It makes its decisions by an absolute majority.
The sessions of the Grand Council are public. However, it may decide to hold a closed session when circumstances require it.
Bills and decrees are subject to two readings.
Decisions are subject to a single reading.
The Grand Council may in all cases decide on a single reading or an additional reading.
Members of Parliament freely fulfill their mandate.
They cannot be prosecuted criminally without the authorization of the assembly for statements they make in front of it or in committee.
Except in cases of being caught in the act, they cannot be arrested during sessions without the authorization of the assembly.
The rights of initiative, motion, postulate, interpellation, resolution, and written question belong to every member of the Grand Council.
The law defines these rights and regulates their exercise.
The executive and administrative power is entrusted to a Council of State composed of 5 members. One of them is chosen from among the voters of the current districts of Conches, Brigue, Viège, Rarogne, and Loèche; one from among the voters of the districts of Sierre, Sion, Hérens, and Conthey; and one from among the voters of the districts of Martigny, Entremont, St-Maurice, and Monthey. The other two are chosen from all the voters of the Canton as a whole. However, there may not be more than one member of the Council of State appointed from among the voters of the same district.
The members of the Council of State are elected directly by the people, on the same day as the deputies to the Grand Council, to take office on the following May 1st. Their election takes place under the majority system. The Council of State organizes itself every year; the outgoing president is not immediately re-electable.
Any vacancy in the Council of State is filled within sixty days, unless a full renewal takes place within four months.
The appointment of the members of the Council of State occurs through a single ballot system. If the appointments are not completed on the designated election day, they will resume on the third following Sunday. In this case, the result of the first operation and the notice of the resumption of operations will be published immediately.
If not all members to be elected achieve a majority in the first round of voting, a second round is conducted. Those who gather the most votes in the second round are elected, even if they have not obtained an absolute majority. However, if in the second round the number of seats to be filled matches the number of candidates proposed, these candidates are declared elected without a vote. The tacit election also applies to the first round of replacement elections when there is only one candidate and one position to be filled.
If the number of citizens who obtained the absolute majority exceeds that of the citizens to be elected, those who obtained the highest number of votes are appointed.
In the event that two or more citizens from the same district have obtained the absolute majority, only the one who has obtained the highest number of votes will be appointed.
In the case of a tie, the decision is made by lot.
The Council of State exercises the executive and administrative power and enjoys all the competences attributed to it by the Constitution or by law.
It acts as a collegial body.
Important affairs always remain within its competence.
It distributes the affairs among the departments, the number and responsibilities of which are determined by an ordinance approved by the Grand Council.
For all other matters, the Council of State organizes itself.
In its relations with the Grand Council, the Council of State has, notably, the following duties: a. it presents drafts of constitutional provisions, laws, decrees, or decisions; b. it reports on popular initiatives, on the initiatives, motions, postulates, and resolutions of the deputies, and responds to their interpellations and questions; c. it submits the budget proposal, the state's accounts, and the management report to the Grand Council; d. it may make proposals to the Grand Council; e. it submits to the Grand Council the drafts of treaties, conventions, and concordats that contain legal rules or generate expenditures within its jurisdiction.
The Council of State exercises, in particular, the following administrative powers: a. it appoints the State personnel, except as otherwise provided by law; b. it oversees the lower authorities as well as public law corporations and institutions; c. it represents the State, concludes treaties, concordats, and public law agreements, and responds to consultations required by the canton; d. it directs the administration, plans and coordinates its activities.
The Council of State ensures public order and for this purpose has at its disposal the police and military forces of the canton. It exercises extraordinary powers in cases of serious and imminent danger, immediately notifying the Grand Council of the measures it takes.
The Council of State enacts the necessary provisions for the application of cantonal laws and decrees in the form of regulations.
The law may delegate to the Council of State the power to enact ordinances by establishing their purpose and the principles governing their content. The delegation must pertain to a specific domain. The ordinances may be subject to the approval of the Grand Council.
The Council of State handles other matters in the form of orders or decisions.
The Council of State enacts the rules of law, puts them into force, unless the Grand Council decides to do so itself, and ensures their application.
It puts into force the directly applicable constitutional provisions immediately after their approval by the Federal Assembly.
The government has, in each district, a representative under the title of prefect and a sub-prefect.
The powers of the Prefect are determined by law.
The judiciary is independent.
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The Cantonal Court shall annually submit to the Grand Council, through the intermediary of the Council of State, a report on all aspects of the judicial administration.
In each municipality or district, there is a judge and a deputy judge; in each district, a civil, correctional, and criminal court; and for the Canton, a Cantonal Court.
The members of the Cantonal Court must be proficient in both national languages.
The number of districts, the composition and jurisdiction of the courts, the appointment and method of remuneration of judges, as well as the incompatibility between judicial functions and other duties, are determined by law.
There shall not be more than four district courts.
The circle or municipal judges and their deputies are appointed by the electors of the circle or municipality.
When forming circles, the population of the municipalities and their topographical situation are taken into account.
Voting takes place in each municipality.
A commercial court and one or more labor courts may be established by legislative means.
There is a Tribunal of Administrative Disputes and a Court responsible for ruling on conflicts of jurisdiction between the administrative authority and the judicial authority.
This Court and this Tribunal are organized by special laws.
The Council of the Judiciary is an independent authority for the oversight of Justice.
It exercises administrative and disciplinary oversight over the cantonal judicial authorities and the magistrates of the public prosecutor's office. The exclusive competence of the Grand Council to revoke, for just cause, the magistrates it has elected is reserved.
The Council of the Judiciary is subject to the high supervision of the Grand Council.
The Grand Council elects the members of the Council of the Judiciary who are not designated by law.
Furthermore, the law provides: a. the composition, method of designation, and organization of the Council of the Judiciary; b. the right of appeal against the decisions of the Council of the Judiciary; c. the relations of the Council of the Judiciary with the Grand Council, the Cantonal Court, and the public prosecutor's office; d. the collaboration of the Council of the Judiciary in judicial elections.
In each district, there is a District Council elected for four years.
The Municipal Council appoints its delegates to the District Council, at the rate of one delegate per 300 inhabitants.
A fraction of 151 counts as a whole.
Each municipality has a delegate, regardless of its population.
The District Council is presided over by the District Prefect or their substitute.
The Council audits the district's accounts and apportions the charges that the district is required to bear among the municipalities, subject to appeal to the Council of State. It annually reviews the financial administration report of the State. It represents the district and specifically ensures its economic development and the distribution of its agricultural products.
The law determines the organization and other functions of this Council.
The municipalities are autonomous within the framework of the Constitution and the laws. They have the authority to carry out local tasks and those they can undertake independently or in association with other municipalities.
The municipalities enjoy their autonomy while respecting the common good and the interests of other public entities.
They perform their own tasks as well as those assigned to them by law.
They judiciously use and carefully administer the communal assets.
The municipalities may associate to jointly carry out certain tasks of public utility and, for this purpose, establish public law associations endowed with legal personality or collaborate in any other manner. The law sets the principles for collaboration, the creation, and the functioning of municipal associations. Under certain conditions specified by law, the Council of State may compel municipalities to collaborate or associate.
Each municipality shall have: a. an assembly of citizens eligible to vote in the municipality; b. a municipal council elected by the assembly of citizens.
The assembly of citizens shall choose a president and a vice-president from among the councilors.
For the remainder, the law establishes the principles of municipal organization.
In municipalities with more than 700 inhabitants, the citizen assembly may elect a general council. The law determines its organization and competencies.
Citizens have an optional referendum right against decisions made by the general council in place of the municipal assembly. The law governs the exercise of this right.
These provisions are not applicable to the bourgeois municipality.
Municipalities have the authority to introduce the right of initiative. In municipalities that recognize this right, citizens may submit initiatives to the municipal council in general terms, concerning the adoption or amendment of regulations that fall within the competence of the municipal assembly. The law regulates the modalities for the introduction and exercise of this right.
The municipalities are subject to the supervision of the Council of State within the limits of Art. 69. The law determines the nature of this supervision, particularly concerning management. To the extent that the Constitution and the laws do not expressly provide otherwise, the Council of State's power of review is limited to legality.
Regulations drawn up by the municipalities must be ratified by the Council of State.
The law may stipulate that important projects of the municipalities are subject to ratification or approval by the Council of State.
The law sets the procedures for ratification.
The following are considered municipalities: a. municipal communes; b. bourgeois communes; c. ...
The municipal commune is composed of the persons residing in the communal territory. Subject to Art. 26, the territory of the municipal communes is guaranteed.
The primary assembly is composed of citizens eligible to vote in the municipality.
It elects a municipal council consisting of three to fifteen members, the president, as well as the vice-president, and, where applicable, the general council.
In municipalities without a general council, the primary assembly decides notably on: a. municipal regulations, except for exceptions specified by law; b. significant projects regarding the sale, granting of restricted real rights, exchange, lease, alienation of capital, loan, borrowing, guarantee, granting, and transfer of hydraulic concessions; c. new non-mandatory expenditures, the amount of which is set by law; d. the budget and the accounts.
In other municipalities, the general council replaces the primary assembly and holds at least the same competencies, except in electoral matters.
In both cases, the law specifies other competencies and regulates the exercise of these rights.
The municipal council has the following responsibilities: a. it provides for the municipal administration; b. it drafts and implements municipal regulations; c. it enforces cantonal legislation; d. it appoints employees; e. it prepares the budget proposal; f. it prepares the accounts.
In municipalities without a burgher council, the municipal council fulfills those functions.
The bourgeois commune is a public law entity responsible for carrying out public interest tasks as defined by law.
The bourgeois assembly is composed of the bourgeois domiciled within the bourgeois territory. The law may extend the exercise of certain rights to the bourgeois domiciled in the canton.
The bourgeois assembly has, at the bourgeois level, the same competencies as the primary assembly. It additionally decides on the admission of new bourgeois.
The bourgeois assembly has the right to request the formation of a separate bourgeois council. This request must be submitted at the end of an administrative period, in accordance with the provisions of the law.
The bourgeois council consists of at least three members and no more than nine.
The Grand Council consists of 130 deputies and an equal number of substitutes, distributed among the districts and elected directly by the people.
The district of Rarogne, composed of two half-districts, each with its own organs and competences, forms two electoral constituencies.
The method of seat allocation among the districts and half-districts is as follows: The total number of the resident Swiss population is divided by 130. The quotient thus obtained is rounded up to the nearest whole number, and this constitutes the electoral quotient. Each district or half-district obtains as many deputies and substitutes as the number of its resident Swiss population contains the electoral quotient. If, after this allocation, all seats have not yet been assigned, the remaining seats are allocated to the districts and half-districts with the largest remainders.
The State Council determines the number of seats allocated to each district and half-district after each population census.
The people's vote takes place in the communes.
The election is conducted by district and half-district, according to the system of proportional representation. The method of applying this principle is determined by law.
The Grand Council, the Council of State, the officers of the judicial order, the communal councils, and the bourgeois councils are appointed for a period of four years.
The president and the vice-president of the Council of State are subject to re-election every year. The president is not immediately eligible for re-election.
Members of the Council of States are elected directly by the people during the elections for the ordinary renewal of the National Council. These elections are conducted using the majority system throughout the entire Canton, which constitutes a single electoral district.
The appointment of members to the Council of States takes place through the same list voting process. If the appointments are not completed on the designated election day, they will be resumed on the third Sunday following. In such cases, the results of the first round and the notice of the resumption will be published immediately.
If not all members secure an absolute majority in the first round of voting, a second round is conducted. Those elected in the second round are the ones who receive the highest number of votes, even if they do not obtain an absolute majority. However, if in the second round the number of members to be elected matches the number of candidates proposed, these candidates are declared elected without a vote. Tacit election also applies to the first round of replacement ballots when there is only one candidate and one position to be filled.
If the number of citizens who have obtained an absolute majority exceeds the number to be elected, those with the highest number of votes are appointed.
In the event of a tie, the decision is made by lot.
The appointment of the members and substitutes of the Grand Council takes place on the first Sunday of March, for each renewal of the legislature.
The newly elected Grand Council takes office at the opening of the constitutive session.
The members of the General Council are elected by the electorate according to the proportional system.
The members of the Municipal and Bourgeois Council are elected by the electorate according to the proportional system. In bourgeois communes and in municipal communes whose population is below the number set by law, the electorate may, by a majority of its members, decide to change the election system under the conditions set by law. The majority system is maintained in bourgeois communes and in municipal communes that use this system at the time this reform comes into effect.
The president, vice-president, judge, and vice-judge are elected by the electorate according to the majority system.
The law sets the election procedures and the date of the vote.
Citizens exercise their political rights at the completed age of 18.
Every male and female voter is eligible for public office.
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A citizen may vote only in one municipal and bourgeois commune.
The law regulates incompatibilities.
It specifically ensures that: a. the same citizen does not simultaneously hold positions that belong to multiple public authorities; b. the same person does not belong to two bodies where one is subordinate to the other; c. members of the same family do not sit in the same authority; d. a citizen entrusted with a public function does not engage in other activities that would prejudice the fulfillment of their duty.
Unless an exception is provided by law, incompatibilities apply to substitutes and alternates.
The law may foresee other exceptions, particularly concerning the municipal regime.
Only one member of the Council of State may sit in the federal chambers.
The cases of exclusion from the right to vote and the right to eligibility are determined by federal and cantonal legislation.
Six thousand active citizens can request a total or partial revision of the Constitution.
Every popular initiative must be submitted to a vote of the people within three years following its submission. This period may be extended by no more than one year by a decision of the Grand Council.
The Grand Council declares the nullity of an initiative that: a. is contrary to federal law; b. concerns more than one matter; c. does not respect the unity of form; d. does not fall within the domain of the Constitution; e. is unfeasible.
An initiative conceived in general terms is submitted to a vote by the people, with a prior notice from the Grand Council.
If the people reject it, it is filed.
If the people accept it, the Grand Council is obliged to act upon it without delay.
In drafting the rules requested by the unformulated initiative, the Grand Council respects the intentions of its authors.
The people decide at the same time whether, in the case of an affirmative vote, the total revision should be undertaken by the Grand Council or by a constituent assembly.
A partial revision of the Constitution can be requested in the form of a fully drafted proposal.
The Grand Council may recommend rejection or acceptance, or also oppose it with a counter-proposal.
When it drafts a counter-proposal, it deliberates over it in two ordinary sessions. The Grand Council may decide on an additional reading.
When the Grand Council adopts a counter-proposal, the citizens are invited to answer the following three questions on the same ballot: a. Do you accept the popular initiative? b. Do you accept the counter-proposal? c. In case both texts obtain an absolute majority of the votes, should the initiative or the counter-proposal be enacted?
If, as a result of the popular vote, the revision is to be conducted by the Grand Council, it shall be discussed in two ordinary sessions.
If it is conducted by a Constituent Assembly, it shall be discussed in two debates.
Elections to the Constituent Assembly shall be conducted on the same basis as elections to the Grand Council. None of the incompatibilities provided for the latter are applicable to them.
The Grand Council may also, on its own initiative, revise the constitution.
The revisions are first subject to a debate on appropriateness, followed by two debates on the text, during ordinary sessions.
In all cases, the Grand Council may decide on an additional reading. It may also ask the people to express their opinion on variants.
The constitution revised by the Grand Council or by a Constituent Assembly is submitted to a vote by the people.
The absolute majority of citizens who participated in the vote decides in the ballots ordered in execution of Arts. 102 and 105.
Any request for revision originating from a popular initiative must be addressed to the Grand Council.
The signatures supporting the request must be provided by municipality, and the electoral eligibility of the signatories must be certified by the president of the municipality. The president must also verify the authenticity of any signatures that appear suspicious.
Acts adopted by the Grand Council before the date of the coming into force of the new constitutional provisions are subject to the mandatory referendum, in accordance with the former Art. 30 of the Cantonal Constitution.
Popular initiatives submitted to the Chancellery prior to this date are subject to the former Arts. 31 to 35 or the former Arts. 101 to 107 of the Cantonal Constitution.
The Grand Council is authorized to modify the order and numbering of the former Arts. 49, 50, 55, 56, and 57 of the Constitution if the new Art. 90 governing incompatibilities is not approved by the people.
The former Articles 49, 50, 55, 56 and 57, 60, paragraphs 2 and 3, 89, paragraph 1, 91, 93 to 99 remain in effect until the adoption of the law provided by the new Article 90, paragraph 1. However, until this date, the Grand Council is authorized to modify the order and numbering of these articles as necessary.