Swiss voters set to back government’s COVID-19 response plan – poll

Swiss voters look set to support the government’s pandemic response plan in a binding referendum this month, a poll for broadcaster SRG showed on Wednesday, November 17.

The gfs.bern survey found 61% backed a law passed in March that expanded financial aid to people hit by the COVID-19 crisis and laid the foundation for certificates the government requires to enter bars and restaurants and attend certain events.

That was the same support as in a poll in October.

The survey found 38% opposed and 1% were undecided before the November 28 referendum under the Swiss system of direct democracy, slightly more opposition than measured in the previous poll, whose margin of error is 2.8 percentage points.

In two other votes that day, the Swiss would support by a two-to-one margin a labor union-backed proposal to boost the nursing profession, the poll found.

Voters were now set to reject a proposal to select federal judges by lottery from a pool of candidates proposed by experts. The government opposes the idea, which aims to reduce political pressure on the judiciary. – Rappler.com