National Council member Thomas Matter visits a polling station for the Swiss People’s Party’s “No 10-Million Switzerland Sustainability Initiative,” in Aarberg, Switzerland, on Sunday. Photo by Peter Schneider/EPA
June 14 (UPI) — While official tallies have yet to be determined, projections indicate Swiss voters have turned down a proposed law aimed at keeping the country’s population at 10 million.
Swiss media are projecting Sunday that the measure will fail, with 54% of people opposed and 46% in favor, The New York Times reported.
The proposed law was introduced by Switzerland’s right-wing Swiss People’s Party, which said capping the population would ease pressure on transportation, housing and the environment.
The country’s population has increased by nearly 25% since 2002, from 7.3 million people to 9.1 million. About 27% of the population are not Swiss citizens.
Despite the Swiss People’s Party expressing concern about infrastructure and public services, the political party also has a long history of campaigning against immigration and asylum seekers, blaming racial minorities for problems in the country, the BBC reported.
Support for the proposal was strongest in rural areas, the Times reported, with opposition centered in the cities and border regions. Had the measure passed, it could have risked Switzerland’s relationship with the European Union. More than half of Swiss-made products are sold in the EU, but those trade agreements are dependent on Europe’s free movement of people.
