Since 2010, young men and women in Switzerland have moved apart politically at an accelerated pace, according to a Sotomo poll run on behalf of the newspaper NZZ am Sonntag, reported RTS.
The study, which asked respondents to place themselves on a political scale between 0 and 10, with 0 being extreme left and 10 extreme right, shows a rise in political polarisation between genders.
From 1980 to 2010, the average difference between male and female voting varied modestly between 5 and 7 percentage points. Between 2010 to 2015 the difference narrowed. Since then it has widened significantly.
Switzerland’s young female voters have shifted left while young male voters have shifted right. Since 2010, the percentage of women aged 18 – 29 describing themselves as politically left has risen from 35% to 52%. Among men of the same age there was a shift right over the same period. Those describing themselves as politically right rose from 29% to 43%.
Switzerland’s political gender divide is not confined to the young. Average gender voting differences across all ages have increased since 2015. In general, women are more likely to favour environmental protection and spending on welfare, while men are more likely to support economic freedom and tighter controls over immigration.
Over the last three years there has been an increase in the number of votes in which a majority of men wanted something different to a majority of women.
Aligning the state retirement age of women to that of men (65) and increasing VAT to further shore up state pension finances are the starkest examples. Men were overwhelming in favour of these plans voting 64% and 66% in favour. Women on the other hand only voted 38% and 45% in favour of these two changes. The fact that the higher retirement age directly affects only women makes this vote unusual. However, there are other votes without this feature that display a clear gender difference. These include the Responsible Business Initiative – 57% women voted yes while only 43% of men voted yes – and the free trade agreement with Indonesia – only 43% women voted yes while 60% of men did.
Exactly why voters have recently drifted apart in this way is unclear. However, political parties’ increasing use of complex wedge issues to drive voters their way is not helping. Once complicated matters that concern everyone are simplified, distorted and bound to a particular party they become counterpoints for political rivals. Rivals then reject them, not necessarily because they reject the issues, but because they have become shorthand for their political opposition.
Calm, open, honest non-partisan political discussions aimed at wicked problems might not provide the crude narratives that win votes. But they are potentially the best antidote to political polarisation.
More on this:
RTS article (in French) – Take a 5 minute French test now
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