Popular initiatives: should the number of signatures be increased?

The popular initiative enables Swiss citizens to propose constitutional amendments. However, despite the frequency with which they are launched, these texts rarely come to fruition. Should the number of signatures required be increased?

Economist and editor of Regard Libre

Yes. Not all citizens' concerns can be the subject of an initiative. However, care must be taken not to make this right inaccessible to the general public. A happy medium therefore had to be found, set at 50,000 signatures in 1891, then 100,000 in 1977 to include women. Since 1977, the population has increased by 40%, and the professionalization of canvassing and the diversification of means of communication have made it easier than ever to obtain signatures. As a result, we finance initiatives from minorities that are not representative of the population.