– Voting envelopes will soon be pre-franked in Bern
A majority of the city council wants to simplify voting. The population should therefore be able to put their documents in any mailbox in the future.
Published: January 18, 2024, 10:58 p.m
The mailbox for unfranked voting in front of the Erlacherhof. (archive image)
Photo: Peter Klaunzer (Keystone)
The city of Bern will probably pre-frank election and voting envelopes in the future, following the example of other Swiss municipalities. Mayor Alec von Graffenried (GFL) announced this in the city council on Thursday.
He promised that the local council would prepare a corresponding template. The GB/JA group submitted a corresponding motion on the same day. In 2017, the request was narrowly rejected by the city council. It now clearly has a majority, as was shown in Thursday’s debate.
This was actually about a different topic. A motion from three left-wing parties called for more mailboxes for unpaid postal voting. The local council decided that this was far too time-consuming.
Even finding suitable locations is difficult. This must ensure that voting is secure and that the envelopes cannot be stolen.
The mailboxes that exist today and are accessible around the clock would also have to be emptied almost every day for four weeks before the vote. If the voter turnout is high, it takes up to three emptyings a day.
Short supply of mailboxes
In Bern there are currently only two mailboxes for unfranked voting: in front of the Erlacherhof in the old town and in the Bienzgut in Bümpliz. Another mailbox at the lost property office on Predigergasse was recently removed for security reasons.
The short offer was met with disapproval by the city council. Democracy should cost something, said Tom Berger on behalf of the FDP/JF parliamentary group. Voting must be as low-threshold as possible.
It would be desirable to have one mailbox per district, said both Lea Bill (GB/JA) and Sara Schmid (SP/Juso). The policy motion passed by a vote of 55-6.
125,000 francs per year
The newly submitted proposal for pre-franked voting envelopes will hit open doors, as has been shown. According to the mayor of Graffenried, it costs the city 125,000 francs per year. The municipalities that already pre-frank their voting envelopes include the city of Lucerne and Herisau AR.
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2024-01-18 22:37:36
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