I want to show that the European Union is important

Fanny Deslandres came eight years ago in Switzerland, her husband is Swiss, your daughter is also. However, for the 31-Year-old is clear: "I feel as a French citizen, even if I live in Switzerland. This brings rights and obligations." If of 23. to 26. In may the European elections will Deslandres submit a question of Bern from your voice. "With my participation in the European elections, I want to show that the European Union is important," says Deslandres. Therefore, you will choose the Pro-European forces.

Deslandres is one of over 130'000 French living in Switzerland and into the electoral register have registered. In the small country, the quarrels constantly with his relationship to the great community of States, even more EU citizens in six EU member States: 2 million, nearly a third of them dual citizens, with a total of around 1.7 million in the voting age, such as the representation of the European Commission in Bern is estimated. Around a fifth of the local population is allowed to participate in the EU elections.

not all of us know that. "What Choice? What time is it?" the representative of the club asks for German in Switzerland. Among his country men. Fanny Deslandres has understanding, even if she finds it bad. "If you live in Switzerland, you feel the European Parliament is more far away than in France or in Germany," she says. At all lack the specific issues and decisions.

this is different

Vera Gärttling has a different experience. The German, for ten years in Switzerland, will participate in the European elections, "because I always choose when I'm allowed to choose". Most of the candidates don't even know you, because party lists and not individuals are elected. The European election is not a choice comparable to the influence on policy is less direct. But this time it was different than the last European election of 2014, says Gärttling: "In Germany, a wide debate on copyright reform in the EU was, therefore, for me, is more present than in other years, what the Europe Parliament."

On a specific follow-up points, the Aargauer SP-national councillor Cédric Wermuth, the has in addition to the Swiss Pass the Italian. In the tug-of-war to an institutional agreement with the EU, Switzerland could improve its initial position, when in the EU Parliament, the left and green forces to be strengthened. This would prevent most of the ear for the concerns of wage dumping as a result of the bilateral agreements. "I hope that as many of the dual citizens to choose those parties that advocate for a good protection of Wages, also at the institutional agreement between Switzerland and the EU," says Wermuth.

Left active in Switzerland

The SP Switzerland is trying to persuade EU citizens with events and flyers to Choose from, and works together with the European sister parties. The German SPD, for example, has in Zurich as a spin-off, the social democratic party of Europe in Geneva. The Italian PD's across the country for decades, a presence, thanks to him abroad to participate in the decision-Italians themselves in the party's internal elections. This year, the Greens are trying to give their European counterparts, voices from Switzerland. In February, they picked up about Reinhard Bütikofer, the Co-chairs of the European Greens, to Zurich.

When the bourgeois parties, in contrast, the EU elections to push hardly on the interest. Dual citizens, such as the Geneva FDP-Nationalrat Benoît Genecand, or the Zurich SVP national councillor Alfred army even do without demonstratively on their democratic rights. "Participation in an Italian or European elections makes no sense for me," says the army. Some States make their foreign citizens to Choose but also difficult, if not impossible: the Italians and Slovaks have to make in the country itself, the voice. Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Ireland and Malta do not allow their citizens abroad. How many voters are involved, nevertheless, from Switzerland, will not be charged. A clue to the statistics of the French abroad, with 11 percent put 2014 your voice, is four times less than in the home.

Cédric Wermuth can understand it. "National election campaigns trigger a lot more emotions than the European elections. This is due to the still weak position of the EU Parliament," he says. However, a part of the indifference to the European political parties fault. "No matter whom you choose, at the end of the same great coalition," criticized Wermuth. "That is why for the voters difficult to understand the extent to which their vote for a change." This is, at least for the European level. However, it is regularly that the EU elections national government coalitions will plunge into the crisis: It is the tragedy of the European elections was"," said wormwood, "that is hardly European, but especially national elected".

(editing Tamedia)

Created: 17.04.2019, 20:34 PM