The vote on whether Moutier should leave canton Bern for canton Jura is still controversial
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The Jura cantonal government has expressed concern at the slow handling of appeals linked to last year’s vote by the people of Moutier to leave canton Bern and join canton Jura.
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“The uncertainty is leading to more tension,” Jura government minister Charles Juillard said Saturday. “Some people still hope that the vote will be annulled and have vowed to do everything to keep Moutier in Bern.”
Juillard, a leading cantonal government member on the Moutier issue, told a gathering of the Jura autonomy movement (MAJ) that it is “difficult to move forward” given that the Bern cantonal government refuses to start negotiations until appeals against alleged voting fraud have been settled.
On June 18, 2017, the inhabitants of Moutier voted by a slim majority of 51.7% to leave the German-speaking canton of Bern and join French-speaking Jura. But appeals being handled by judicial authorities in the canton of Bern are delaying the transfer of Moutier and its 7,530 inhabitants.
The Jura cantonal government has established its own calendar, under which Moutier would become part of Jura on January 1, 2021. But Juillard said this date will be difficult to meet given the appeals.
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Accusations of fraud frame final Jura votes
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Two small Bernese municipalities are deciding whether to join the canton of Jura amid voter fraud accusations after the last such vote.
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Justice authorities are investigating electoral fraud allegations during a local vote in the Swiss town of Moutier three months ago.
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The democratic potential of public votes depends on the legal design and political context as shown in two examples in Britain and Switzerland.
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