Online voting to take electronic leap forward
Four communes in canton Geneva could vote electronically on national issues for the first time this autumn.
The experiment is part of a long-term drive to introduce online voting, or e-voting, across the country.
“Everything looks set to go ahead,” said Daniel Brändli, who heads the federal government’s e-voting project.
Pilot projects in Geneva have already shown that a substantial number of voters are prepared to cast their ballots online.
Successful trials of online voting at a local level have prompted the government to build on plans to roll out e-voting across the country.
Internet voting experiments in Zurich and Neuchâtel are expected to follow next year.
Local success
Anières, a small town near Geneva, pioneered the concept of voting on the internet in Switzerland in January 2003.
Similar trials in Cologny and Carouge have since followed.
Some 44 per cent of those on the electoral role in Anières voted online. Around half voted by post, while only six per cent actually went to the polling station.
If the next trial in Meyrin on June 13 goes without a hitch, all four communes are likely to be given the green light from the government to introduce online voting on national issues.
Local officials in Meyrin have expressed concerns about security and privacy issues, but the cantonal authorities have dismissed their fears as unfounded.
Delays
The government has also given cantons Zurich and Neuchâtel the authorisation to conduct e-voting trials.
Concerns about costs delayed the start of the project in Zurich, but the cantonal government has now agreed to provide additional funding for the trial.
E-voting is due to be used in elections for Zurich University’s student union in December.
If the project is a success, e-voting trials should be introduced in Zurich next year.
Wider picture
One problem facing the authorities in Zurich is that – unlike in Geneva – the canton does not maintain a central electoral register.
“It’s a major challenge getting everything under one roof,” said cantonal government spokeswoman, Susanne Sorg-Keller.
Meanwhile, canton Neuchâtel has drafted a new law which will regulate a variety of services on the internet. The legislation is expected to come into force in January.
According to cantonal spokesman Danilo Rota, e-voting on federal issues should be possible in June 2005.
swissinfo with agencies
Canton Geneva has pioneered e-voting in Switzerland.
In January 2003, 44 per cent of the local electorate in Anières voted online.
Similar e-voting trials took place in Cologny last November and in Carouge last month.
A fourth trial takes place on June 13 in Meyrin.
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