A referendum on a war tax was held in Switzerland on 6 June 1915.Nohlen, D & Stöver, P (2010) Elections in Europe: A data handbook, p1907 Voters were asked whether they approved of amending the constitution to introduce a one-off war tax during the First World War, which Switzerland remained neutral. It was approved by a large majority of voters and all cantons, the first time a referendum had been passed in every canton.Nohlen & Stöver, pp1900-1907
Background The referendum was a mandatory referendum, which required a double majority; a majority of the popular vote and majority of the cantons.Nohlen & Stöver, p1891 The decision of each canton was based on the vote in that canton. Full cantons counted as one vote, whilst half cantons counted as half.
Results ChoicePopular voteCantonsVotes%FullHalfTotalFor452,11794.319622Against27,4615.7000Blank votes5,646––––Invalid votes2,943––––Total488,16710019622Registered voters/turnout871,47656.0–––Source: Nohlen & Stöver
References