Google Doodle released a doodle in view of Federal elections in Switzerland that are scheduled to take place today, October 22. On this day all members of the National Council and Council of States will be elected.
Following these elections, on December 13, Switzerland will hold elections for the Federal Council, the country’s collective government and presidency.
The eligibility criteria for both candidates and voters in National Council elections are consistent throughout Switzerland. To run for office or cast a ballot, individuals must be Swiss citizens and at least 18 years old. Swiss citizens living abroad can participate by registering to vote in their last canton of residence or their canton of citizenship, regardless of how long they have lived in Switzerland or whether they have ever resided there.
The National Council comprises 200 members, elected from the 26 cantons, each of which forms a constituency. Multi-member cantons employ open-list proportional representation, with the addition of apartments for allied parties and sub-apparentments for lists within parties.
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Initially, apparented lists are collectively considered for seat allocation. Seat allocation utilises the Hagenbach-Bischoff system without any specific threshold. Voters have the flexibility to strike out names on party lists, duplicate names, distribute their votes across multiple parties using a system called panachage, or create their own list on a blank ballot. The six single-member cantons adopted a first-past-the-post voting system.
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The allocation of National Council seats to cantons is based on their respective population sizes, which encompass children and resident foreigners who lack voting rights. According to the official population count from the end of 2020, Basel-Stadt lost one seat, while Zürich gained another seat. Zürich holds the highest number of seats among the cantons.
(With inputs from Wikipedia)
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Updated: 22 Oct 2023, 07:07 AM IST