Could digital collection of signatures lead to more initiatives in Switzerland?

Keystone / Anthony Anex

Calls for digital collection of signatures for popular initiatives and referendums, so-called "e-collecting", have grown louder following a forged signatures scandal in Switzerland.

Earlier this month, the Swiss Senate voted in favour of a motion urging the swift implementation of digital signature collection. In parallel, steps are also being taken in Switzerland for the introduction of a digital ID scheme, or e-ID, slated for 2026. This would enable the easy verification of electronic signatures. However, its actual implementation is likely to take years, and the proposal remains contentious.

What are the possible consequences?

The adoption of e-collecting would eliminate the laborious process of gathering signatures on the street. An email campaign and a few clicks from supporters would suffice. Political analyst Mark Balsiger believes it will make signature collection much easier: “Popular initiatives could become even more popular,” he told Swiss public radio, SRF. This raises the question whether e-collecting requires additional measures to prevent an avalanche of initiatives. A report from the Swiss federal government in November concluded there was no immediate need for action. It argued that e-collecting would not result in a dramatic rise in popular initiatives.

Who would benefit?

“Whoever has a lot of data has real gold,” says Balsiger. Certain parties, associations and NGOs already have huge databases of email addresses and mobile phone numbers, which are critical for e-collecting. This means that powerful players today would continue to hold an advantage.

Balsiger comments on the original purpose of popular initiatives: “They were initially an instrument for the opposition, namely the Social Democratic Party and the Conservative Democratic Party.” Today, they are often used as tools for exerting pressure or making threats. “The two largest parties, the Swiss People’s Party and the Social Democratic Party, rely on them systematically,” he adds.

The 100,000 question

To prevent the number of popular initiatives increasing due to e-collecting, the threshold for required signatures might need to be raised. This debate is now likely to gain traction. Both the Social Democratic Party and the Swiss Farmers’ Association have indicated they are open to adjusting thresholds. The Farmers’ Association recently confirmed its stance to the Keystone-SDA news agency. Balsiger notes that the discussion about signature thresholds must be viewed in the context of e-collecting: “When the popular initiative was introduced in 1891, around 7.5% of voters’ signatures were required. Today, less than 2% is sufficient.”

Next steps

The debate surrounding the implementation of e-collecting and any accompanying measures will continue. The Swiss federal government opposes a rapid rollout. In its reply to the Senate proposal, it advocated first gathering experiences of e-collecting. It also supports replacing, rather than supplementing, the collection of signatures on paper. The government has approved a separate proposal for a pilot trial of e-collecting. However, the House of Representatives must still decide on this issue.

Translated from German using DeepL/amva/sb