E-voting trials extended but progress is slow

The introduction of electronic voting for Swiss citizens is taking a step forward as ongoing trials are extended to nearly half of the country’s 26 cantons. In the November 28 nationwide ballot, up to 190,000 citizens – 4.1 per cent of the potential electorate – can participate over cyberspace rather than casting a postal vote or going to the polling booth. But despite pressure, notably by the Organisation of the Swiss Abroad (OSA), there is still a long way to go before e-voting is introduced at a nationwide level. The extension of the trials from seven to 12 cantons is seen as significant progress in a process that began seven years ago with trials in canton Geneva. For the first time canton Graubünden is taking part in the tests. As the cantonal government is keen to include the three linguistic groups of the region, not only the German, but also the Italian and Romansh-speaking communes will be part of the trial. As such 744 Swiss expatriates registered in six ...