Swiss Passport

Since when have Swiss women been allowed to vote and elect at federal level?

Seit wann dürfen Schweizer Bürgerinnen auf Bundesebene wählen und abstimmen?

Correct answer: D

  1. A since 1878seit 1878
  2. B since 1946seit 1946
  3. C since 1919seit 1919
  4. D since 1971seit 1971

Why

The men accepted women's suffrage on 7 February 1971. Since then, Swiss women citizens have been allowed to vote and elect at federal level.

Common mistakes

C: since 1919
In 1919, elections were held for the first time using proportional representation; but women were still not allowed to vote.
B: since 1946
In 1946 there was still no women's suffrage; a popular vote in 1959 even failed.

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

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