Today, a majority of voters in Moutier, a municipality in the canton of Bern voted to break away from Bern and become part of the canton of Jura, Switzerland’s newest canton, which was carved out of the canton of Bern in 1979.
Voter turnout was high (89%) in Moutier today. 2,114 (55%) voters versus 1,740 (45%), in the largely French-speaking municipality of around 7,000 people, voted in favour of becoming part of the canton of Jura.
Jura has only French as its official language, while the largely German-speaking canton of Bern has both German and French as official languages.
In an earlier vote in 2017, which was later annulled, 51.7% voted in favour of quitting Bern for the canton of Jura.
The 2017 vote was overturned after allegations of propaganda and voting irregularities. Today’s vote was closely monitored by federal government observers. According to a press statement, no irregularities were observed.
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Vote results (in French) – Take a 5 minute French test now
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