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Even things like citizenship and elections are fully decentralized, which has some.. interesting outcomes sometimes, like the fact that one canton didn't allow
by vrganj 7mo ago
Even things like citizenship and elections are fully decentralized, which has some.. interesting outcomes sometimes, like the fact that one canton didn't allow women's suffrage until 1990 (!) [0] or that a lady who's lived there for 34 years had her citizenship application denied because the local dairy farmers found her animal rights activism "annoying". [1]
[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_suffrage_in_Switzerland https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_suffrage_in_Switzerl...
[1] https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-38595807 https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-38595807
- FabCH 7mo agoUltimately the people are sovereign, but realistically the Kantons are. Which is why that often cited „lady denied citizenship“ is incomplete. The Kantonal court overturned the decision of the municipality and gave her citizenship. It’s also why it took considerable more effort to force Appenzell to accept women’s suffrage.
- red_admiral 7mo agoCitizenship is federal (you're a citizen of the country, not the canton), but the procedure for getting citizenship varies and usually involves being in good standing with the local community. Especially in rural areas this sometimes needs court intervention if people are being too arbitrary.