Switzerland Today
Dear Swiss of the world,
Switzerland is regularly criticised for its lack of transparency on political funding, but the country has taken a step towards more openness. Since the 2023 federal elections, parties and committees have had to declare the level of investment in their campaigns.
And while some still consider these rules to be insufficient, we at least learned today that campaign budgets for the upcoming vote on the “No to 10 million ” initiative are already breaking records.
Enjoy the read and have a great weekend.
Campaign budgets for the June 14 vote on the “No to 10 million” initiative have hit record levels. According to figures published on Friday by the Swiss Federal Audit Office (SFAO), both sides combined plan to spend CHF15.5 million ($19.7 million).
Opponents of the Swiss People’s Party initiative will spend CHF9 million campaigning against the proposal, which aims to cap the country’s population by strictly limiting immigration. Almost half of this (CHF4.2 million) comes from the business lobby group Economiesuisse. Supporters of the initiative are investing CHF6.4 million, financed largely by members of the Swiss People’s Party.
The CHF15.5 million already declared clearly beats the previous record of some CHF10 million, which was reached during the motorway expansion vote in November 2024. However, parties and campaign committees have only been legally required to disclose their spending since 2023.
Unsurprisingly, spending on the second issue up for vote on June 14 – the referendum on an amendment to the Civilian Service Act – remains much more modest. The two camps are also far more evenly matched: supporters have declared CHF300,000, while opponents have registered CHF320,000.
For the first time since 2019, Switzerland will not be in the Eurovision final. Despite a lauded performance on Thursday, Veronica Fusaro from Thun, canton Bern, failed to qualify.
With the song Alice, Fusaro did not manage to convince enough viewers to advance to the final. Yet Friday’s press coverage was full of praise for her appearance on the Viennese stage. “Her pop-rock anthem about being in the grips of a love turned toxic, in a Wonderland become a prison, lived up to its promise,” wrote the French-language newspaper Le Temps.
Fusaro said she was “disappointed” after being eliminated, yet “proud” of her performance with “a really strong song that can have a life outside the context of Eurovision”. “A lot of people discovered my music thanks to Eurovision. I’ll come back stronger and better,” she told Swiss public broadcaster RTS.
The competition in Vienna was particularly fierce on Thursday evening. Several favourites who had been marked out by the bookmakers for some days – including Australia and Denmark – qualified. Following the two semi-finals on Tuesday and Thursday, 25 countries will compete in Saturday’s final.
Around six anti-LGBTIQ hate crimes are reported every week in Switzerland. While the figure has remained stable, advocacy groups say it represents only the tip of the iceberg.
The eighth edition of the hate crime report, published Friday by the LGBTIQ Helpline, noted 281 reports of discrimination and violence targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer people in 2025. That is 28 fewer than the previous year.
The organisations behind the report stress that the official figures capture only a fraction of reality. They point to a recent study in Geneva showing that more than 80% of respondents had already experienced discrimination or violence in public spaces.
Ahead of the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia and Transphobia on Sunday, umbrella organisations for these communities want “a reduction in the unreported figure and an increase in the reporting of hate crimes”.
Starting this evening, Switzerland is hosting the Ice Hockey World Championship for the first time since 2009. For the host country, the challenge is twofold: organising a major international event successfully while also trying to win a first world title on home ice.
After a 17-year absence, the event will be in Switzerland until May 31. The 2020 tournament, originally planned to take place here, was cancelled because of the Covid-19 pandemic, further heightening the current anticipation among fans. A total of 16 nations will compete in arenas in Zurich and Fribourg.
The Swiss national team opens “its” tournament against the United States, crowned world champions last year in Stockholm after a final victory against – Switzerland. Now the national team is hoping to claim a historic first gold medal on home soil, having previously won three silver medals and eight bronze medals.
Beyond the sporting stakes, the tournament is also strategically important for Switzerland’s international image. “We’re going to showcase our know-how and light the way for 2038,” Marc-Anthony Anner, chairman of the championship’s board of directors, told Le Temps, referring to the Winter Olympics Switzerland hopes to host that year.
Translated using AI/amva
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