Vaud moves to halve the residence requirements for expats to vote

At a vote this week, lawmakers in Canton Vaud approved a plan to halve the residency requirements for foreigners to vote at the local level. Expats in the region could soon be given the opportunity to vote and stand for office at municipal elections after just five years of residence.

Vaud moves to expand voting rights for non-Swiss residents

As it stands, Vaud is one of the few cantons, alongside Fribourg, Neuchâtel, Jura, Geneva and parts of Basel-Stadt, Graubünden and Appenzell Ausserrhoden, that gives their non-Swiss residents some form of political rights. Instead of waiting to apply for citizenship, residents of Lausanne, Montreux, Vevey and many others can vote and stand for election at both the communal and cantonal level, provided they have held a Swiss residence permit for at least 10 years, and have lived in Vaud for at least three years.

Now, thanks to a 70-67 vote in the Vaud Grand Council, expats could soon stand for local elections in Vaud if they hold a permit for five years or more, and have lived in the canton for at least three years. However, residence requirements to be elected at the cantonal level would remain the same.

Supporters hail an "evolution" of voting rights in Vaud

The proposal stems from the “For political rights for those who live here” Initiative, a submitted referendum which originally called for residency requirements to be halved at the cantonal and local level. Speaking to 24 Heures, Social Democratic Cantonal Councillor Alexandre Démétriadès called the new step an “encounter with history” and an “evolution of voting rights in the canton”. 

As of the end of 2024, 291.229 of Vaud’s 855.749 person-strong population are not Swiss citizens. If the plans come to fruition, it could mean opening up the political process to a large chunk of people, who together make up 34 percent of the region’s population.

When will more of Vaud's expats be given the franchise?

So, where do we go from here? As the change would require an amendment to the Vaud constitution, it must be submitted as a referendum. The vote is likely to take place on September 28, 2025.

In September, voters will decide whether to approve the plan to cut the residency requirements for standing in local elections. They will also choose whether to approve the “For political rights for those who live here” Initiative in its entirety, thereby halving the requirements at both local and cantonal levels - the government is against this plan.