On 29 October 2026, Geneva's Grand Council passed a law, by 78 votes to 8, that reopens the way to e-voting. The canton of Geneva will use the Swiss Post platform and is aiming for the 6 June 2027 vote. This return still depends on authorisation from the Federal Council, which the canton plans to request in early January 2027.
Who decides what: the canton, then the Confederation
The vote of 29 October 2026 is a cantonal decision, not yet a return of online voting. According to the IT magazine ICTjournal, citing the Tribune de Genève, the Grand Council amended Geneva's law on the exercise of political rights to allow this return.
The Grand Council is the cantonal parliament. According to the official website of the State of Geneva, it is one of the canton's three branches of power, alongside the Council of State, which is the government, and the Judiciary. The 78 votes in favour represent more than nine in ten votes cast (78 out of 86).
The final say rests with the Federal Council, the Swiss government. According to ICTjournal, Geneva plans to submit its request for authorisation to it in early January 2027. Its general staff is the Federal Chancellery. On its website, the Chancellery describes itself as the "guarantor of popular rights" and organises federal votes and elections together with the cantons.
The sources consulted do not specify which federal service will examine Geneva's request, nor the criteria applied. The date of 6 June 2027 therefore remains a target set by the canton.
Timeline of e-voting in Geneva
| Date | Step | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Geneva becomes an e-voting pioneer | Past (ICTjournal) |
| May 2019 | Cantonal system abandoned, notably for budgetary reasons | Past (ICTjournal) |
| 29 October 2026 | The Grand Council adopts the amendment to the law, by 78 votes to 8 | Done (ICTjournal) |
| Early January 2027 | Request for authorisation to the Federal Council | Planned (ICTjournal) |
| 6 June 2027 | First vote targeted with e-voting | Target, subject to authorisation (ICTjournal) |
| 24 October 2027 | Federal elections: renewal of Parliament | Scheduled (Federal Chancellery) |
If the June 2027 target is met, e-voting will have been suspended in Geneva for eight years, since May 2019.
Why Swiss Post rather than a cantonal system
The reason given comes down to costs and risks. According to the parliamentary committee report cited by ICTjournal, Geneva will no longer have to bear alone the development costs and the risks associated with its own system.
Geneva would join a platform already in use elsewhere. According to ICTjournal, the Swiss Post solution is already authorised in six cantons, including Neuchâtel, St. Gallen and Basel-Stadt.
E-voting security: what is public
Two elements are made public, according to ICTjournal. The source code of the Swiss Post solution is published. The system is also subject to regular public intrusion tests, that is, attack attempts carried out openly to put the system to the test.
These practices do not amount to authorisation. It is up to the Federal Council to give Geneva the green light or not, and the sources consulted give neither the results of the latest tests nor any flaws that may have been fixed.
What we don't know yet
- How long the Federal Council will take to respond and the conditions it will set.
- Which voters will be covered: the entire Geneva electorate or only part of it.
- The cost of the Swiss Post platform for the canton, which no source puts a figure on.
- Whether e-voting might be used in Geneva for the federal elections of 24 October 2027.
- The names of the three other cantons already using the platform.
Sources
- ICTjournal, return of e-voting, 30 October 2026 (cites the Tribune de Genève and the parliamentary committee report)
- Federal Chancellery, home page (role of the Chancellery, 2027 federal elections)
- State of Geneva, official website (cantonal institutions)
