Some 90’000 foreign nationals are eligible to vote in local elections in Vaud. Are you one of them? Here’s why you should exercise your right.
Thank you to Evren Kiefer who is on the Green party’s list for the conseil communal. He has provided Living in Nyon with this article that provides a clear overview of who is eligible to vote and how the system works.
Campaigns for local elections are underway in Nyon. As well as in every other village and town of the Canton de Vaud. The first round of voting will be on March 7th. We’re electing the local authorities. And you might be eligible to take part even if you’re not a Swiss national.
At the municipal level, residents who have
• lived in Switzerland for 10 years,
• in the Canton de Vaud for the last 3 years,
• and now have a B or C residency permit
are eligible to vote, get elected and petition the authorities.
If you’re eligible, you should get your voting material in the mail. Full information is available in French on the canton’s website and Nyon’s website.
Make your voice heard! Deciding who will govern the town over the next five years is a huge deal. They will decide how the town recovers from Covid. Have outstanding influence over which projects get priority in Nyon’s development. And, of course, our attitude towards the climate crisis is also on the ballot.
We’ll be electing the conseil communal and the municipalité.
The conseil communal oversees the city’s management. It votes the city budgets and bylaws. In Nyon, the assembly has 100 councilors. They are elected by the proportional-representation system.
The municipalité is the city’s government. In Nyon, 7 people including one syndic (mayor) compose the municipality. They manage the day-to-day affairs of the city and enact the decisions of the council. They are elected by the majority vote in two rounds with another election for the mayor.
You’ll find full details in French about how all this works here. Or you can also read one of our previous articles on Living in Nyon here, provided by Robert Jenefsky with further details on the running of the local elections.
On the 16th of February, an event to encourage open exchanges and dialogue entitled “Dialogue en ligne – Echange avec les habitant.e.s pour la Ville de demain” is organised (in French) in the run-up to the elections.
Find out more about each party and the candidates and ask your own questions too. You can get more information and sign up here.
The participants are:
Daniel Rossellat (Syndic)
Elise Buckle (Les Vert.e.s)
Pierre Wahlen (Les Vert.e.s)
Schmutz (PS)
Alexandre Démétriadès (PS)
Each party has a booth at the market every Saturday up to the election. You can meet lots of candidates from different parties there and ask them questions. As we are candidates with the Green party, we will also be there to inform you about our policies and agenda.
