Grand Council TG Thurgau parliament rejects voting rights for foreigners

On Wednesday, the Thurgau cantonal parliament rejected the possible introduction of communal voting rights for foreigners. Those who want to have a say should be naturalized, according to the opinion of the conservative majority.

Parliament rejected the proposal with 61 votes against and 45 in favor. This means that in future it will not be up to the municipalities to grant citizens without a Swiss passport the right to vote.

The SVP was united against this proposal. "Anyone who wants to have a say should be naturalized," explained their parliamentary group spokesperson. A majority of the FDP and the EDU also believed that anyone who wanted to have a say should want to belong.

The cantonal government also did not want to leave this option to the municipalities. "The creation of second-class voting rights" was not necessary, according to the response to the motion. This would ultimately have required an amendment to the cantonal constitution.

It would be an option for Kreuzlingen

The motion was mainly supported by the SP, the Greens and the GLP. Across Switzerland, 27 percent of all municipalities would have the scope for municipal voting rights for foreigners. This would allow local politics to be more broadly anchored in the population.

In Thurgau, such efforts were pursued in Kreuzlingen. The border town has a foreign population of 57 percent. In the Grand Council, town president Thomas Niederberger (FDP) explained that the aim was to give all residents a say in the use of taxpayers' money in construction projects, for example. "We want to strengthen togetherness."

In German-speaking Switzerland, the cantons of Appenzell Ausserrhoden, Graubünden and Basel-Stadt have such optional voting rights for foreigners. In numerous cantons, however, corresponding initiatives have failed in recent years.