Basel e-voting glitch leaves 2,000 votes uncounted

Frustrated Swiss Abroad: former Basel politician Christine D'Souza protests in front of Basel City Hall. Hanna Girard / Girard

The glitch in Basel’s e-voting system is having far‑reaching consequences. The public prosecutor has opened an investigation into potential electoral fraud, and the authorities now face possible voting complaints as well as a growing risk of eroded public trust.

Christine D’Souza is furious. On Sunday at noon, she stands in front of Basel City Hall holding a sign that reads: “My vote doesn’t count.” D’Souza lives in Kiffis in Alsace, not far from the Swiss border, and last week sent her voting documents to the Basel State Chancellery electronically.

However, her vote could not be counted due to a glitch involving a USB stick. D’Souza has sharply criticised the canton for informing those affected about the technical problems too late to be able to react. She says she no longer had the opportunity to recast her vote.

>>Read more about the glitch issue in our report below:

D’Souza, a former Basel politician, is now considering legal action against the canton. A complaint for violation of her political rights would be possible. Other Swiss citizens living abroad were also affected by the glitch. The canton revealed that around 2,000 votes could not be counted.

Investigations underway over possible electoral fraud

In Basel, an external investigationExternal link and a criminal probe by the public prosecutor’s office should determine how the sealed e-voting ballot box occurred. There is an initial suspicion of electoral fraud.

“The experts from the Digital Crime Unit of the criminal investigation department have come across indications that give rise to an initial suspicion of electoral fraud,” the public prosecutor’s office said.

Basel is also suspending the e-voting trial until December 31, 2026.

In addition to the legal repercussions, the canton and proponents of e-voting also face a potential loss of trust. Basel City plans to expand its e-voting programme this year, allowing not only Swiss citizens abroad but also voters living in Switzerland to cast their votes electronically.

However, political scientist Lucas Leemann believes the USB glitch is likely to give new momentum to critics of e-voting. “This is a significant setback,” says Leemann. “It gives opponents a concrete example to point to the risks and problems.”

‘This is devastating for e-voting’

Michael Hermann, a political scientist and managing director at the research institute Sotomo, agrees. The Swiss government and the cantons have had to build up a great deal of trust in recent years.

Michael Hermann, managing director of the research institute Sotomo, Keystone / Christian Beutler

“The fact that this is happening now is a disaster,” says Hermann. “It is devastating for electronic voting, because there are already many reservations about it. A glitch like this sets e-voting back years.”

The technical problem has also sparked debate in among Basel politicians. The Swiss People’s Party, the Liberal Democratic Party of Basel City and the Radical-Liberal Party have already submitted or announced parliamentary motions. People’s Party parliamentarian Lorenz Amiet said: “The collateral damage is considerable and the canton’s reputation has clearly suffered.”

Regret from the canton

The Basel State Chancellery declined to comment further on the incident. On Sunday, Deputy State Secretary Marco Greiner expressed understanding for the public’s anger and told Regionaljournal Basel: “If someone is unable to exercise their right to vote, this is a violation of political rights. We very much regret that. We understand if those affected consider taking legal action.”

It remains unclear exactly how the glitch occurred. The Basel State Chancellery points to a problem with a USB stick used to decrypt the digital ballot boxes and stresses that there is no connection between the incident and the Swiss Post e-voting system.

Hermann disagrees: “Any human error is also related to the system. The system must be so secure that human error is not even possible. After all, so much has been invested in it for so long.”

Voters taking part in e-voting in cantons Thurgau, Graubünden and St Gallen were not affected by the glitch in Basel.

No impact on the final result

Ultimately, the uncounted votes from Basel had no influence on the final result of the federal votes. The results were clear, and there were no cantonal proposals in Basel City on Sunday. What is clear, however, is that the incident will likely have political and legal consequences.

“E-voting is an important connection,” D’Souza says. “Of course, I could also vote by post. But depending on where you live, the postal route can delay the vote.”

Federal Chancellery stays the course

The Federal Chancellery told Swiss public broadcaster SRF: “All necessary steps must be taken to ensure that such an incident cannot happen again.”

E-voting is currently being tested. “The aim is to gain experience,” the Chancellery added. “An incident like the one in Basel City does not call the trial operation into question, but rather underlines its necessity.” Overall, the experience with the new e-voting trial launched in summer 2023 has been very positive.

Translated from German using AI/amva/gw

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