Direct democracy in the Swiss cantons: some remarks on referendums, popular initiatives and popular assemblies

Abstract

The main goal of the article is to answer the question about the role of direct democracy in Swiss Cantons. The author in her considerations concentrates on such institutions as: cantonal referendum, cantonal popular initiatives and popular assembly (Landsgemeinde). The questions that were posed in this article were the following: how do the direct democratic institutions work in the Swiss Confederation? What kind of changes are taking place when it comes to cantonal forms of direct democracy? What is the role of Landsgemeinde and how does it function in practice? In the research process several research methods have been used by the author. They were: institutional-legal analysis that helped to study the legal acts on direct democratic forms in Swiss cantons; quantitative analysis – basing on statistical data it was possible to evaluate the use of direct democratic forms of civic involvement. Also participative observation and individual interviews were very helpful in the research process – they were used during the author’s stays in Switzerland, where she was able to observe both Landsgemeinde – in 2013 in Appenzell Innerhoden and in 2014 in Glarus.