Voting rights without a passport: an opportunity for integration?

(© Image: Depositphotos) In Sweden, immigrants are allowed to participate in regional elections even if they don't have a Swedish passport. Researchers at the University of Basel recently investigated whether this affects naturalization numbers. Their findings could also be of interest for Switzerland. In most countries, the right to participate in the democratic process is reserved for citizens, so anyone who wants to be able to vote must first go through the naturalization process. So far, that has also largely been the case in Switzerland, though certain municipalities and cantons have allowed foreign residents to vote, at least on certain bills. In Sweden, all foreign nationals are permitted to vote in regional elections after a certain duration of residency, even without Swedish citizenship. EU citizens receive the right to vote as soon as they take up residence.