Swiss Passport

When did Swiss women obtain the right to vote and elect at federal level?

Wann haben Schweizer Frauen das Stimm- und Wahlrecht auf Bundesebene bekommen?

Correct answer: B

  1. A 19181918
  2. B 19711971
  3. C 19481948
  4. D 19881988

Why

On 7 February 1971, Swiss men said yes at the ballot box. Since then, women have been allowed to vote and elect at federal level.

Common mistakes

A: 1918
In 1918, the national general strike demanded women's suffrage, but it was not introduced at that time.
C: 1948
In 1948, the AHV was introduced, not women's suffrage.

Topic

Women's suffrage and equal rights

In Switzerland, women were not allowed to vote and elect for a long time. Because only men were allowed to vote, the men had to decide on it. In 1959 they still said no. On 7 February 1971 they said yes, with 66 percent. Since then, Swiss women have had the right to vote and elect at federal level. Many other countries in Europe had it decades earlier.

Timeline of Swiss history
  1. 58 BCHelvetii and Romans
  2. 1291The Rütli and William Tell
  3. 1515Marignano
  4. 1523The Reformation
  5. 1798The French and Napoleon
  6. 1815Neutrality
  7. 1848Sonderbund War and the federal state
  8. 19th c.From agrarian state to industrial state
  9. 1918National general strike
  10. 1939–1945Second World War
  11. 1948Prosperity and AHV
  12. 1970Immigration and the Schwarzenbach initiative
  13. 1971Women's suffrage and equal rights
  14. 1979The youngest canton: Jura

History of Switzerland
Women's rights

Sources

Last checked: September 2026

Question 217 of the official question list of the Canton of Zurich (Gemeindeamt, May 2025). Translation and explanation: Swiss Passport.

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