This is the result of a new survey commissioned by 20 Minuten and Tamedia and reported by the SonntagsZeitung. The Federal Council reignited the debate on nuclear power plants at the end of August with its plan to lift the ban on new builds, after this had been approved by 58% of the electorate in 2027.
In the survey conducted from September 19 to 22, 43% of all participants stated that they opposed the construction of new nuclear power plants. No information was provided by 4%. This was a turnaround compared to a survey conducted from September 6 to 10, in which 51% were against new nuclear power plants.
The latest survey reveals a gender gap: only 44% of women are in favor of the change of course compared to 63% of men.
In addition to the gender divide, the survey published on Sunday revealed the familiar right-left divide on nuclear energy. The Greens rejected the lifting of the ban on new builds with 81%, compared to 73% for the Social Democrats and 59% for the Green Liberals.
Political divide
Centre Party supporters tipped into the Yes camp with 52%. Party president Gerhard Pfister had criticised the Federal Council’s decision. The national government apparently did not want to accept the 2017 referendum.
Swiss People’s Party supporters backed the lifting of the ban with 82% and Radical Party voters with 77%.
The online survey was conducted from September 19 to 22, 2024 by the Leewas Institute on behalf of 20 Minuten and Tamedia. Some 19,552 people from German-speaking Switzerland, French-speaking Switzerland and Ticino took part. The sample error range is ±1.7 percentage points.
Translated from German by DeepL/mga
This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles.
If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, if you want to learn more about how we use technology, click here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.
Popular Stories
More
Climate adaptation
Why Switzerland is among the ten fastest-warming countries in the world
In Switzerland more people are being referred to electrical therapies or psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. Are there similar approaches where you live?
Reduced fine for Credit Suisse in currency cartel case
This content was published on
The Court of Justice of the European Union has reduced the fine imposed on Credit Suisse from €83.2 million to €28.9 million, while confirming its involvement in a spot foreign exchange cartel.
Leadership increases stress in animals too, shows Swiss study
This content was published on
A study conducted at the University of Zurich has shown that when animals make decisions for their group, their hearts beat faster.
Swiss firm ABB to electrify one of the largest oil and gas terminals
This content was published on
ABB has won a major contract in Azerbaijan for the electrification and grid stability of one of the world's largest oil and gas terminals, Sangachal.
Swiss railways’ ‘invisible disabilities’ lanyards prove popular
This content was published on
According to the Swiss Federal Railways, there is great interest in its lanyards for travellers with invisible disabilities.
This content was published on
A prisoner who escaped on Thursday in Baden, canton Aargau, is still on the run. The 23-year-old Albanian, who was in custody for burglary, was wearing handcuffs when he escaped.
Swiss city places information boards next to Nazi memorial
This content was published on
The city of Chur in eastern Switzerland has erected four information boards next to the Nazi memorial in the Daleu cemetery.
Swiss heat: parallels drawn with 2003 ‘summer of century’
This content was published on
Looking at the current weather situation in Switzerland, the private weather service MeteoNews has drawn parallels with the hot summer of 2003.
Syria: Switzerland calls for ceasefire to be respected in Suweida
This content was published on
Switzerland has condemned the attacks on civilians in the southern Syrian town of Suweida and has called on all parties to respect the ceasefire in the Druze stronghold.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.