Following the Confederation’s erroneous financial projections regarding the AHV, the Greens are filing a challenge against the vote on the retirement age for women. This was decided by the party’s executive committee, the secretary general stated.
Rahel Estermann clarified to Keystone-ATS that the final decision was made on Wednesday, confirming a report that appeared in Tamedia’s German-language newspapers. The party has until Friday to file its appeal.
This appeal is expected to be filed by individuals in the cantons of Geneva and Zurich, Rahel Estermann added. The cantons are the first instance in this matter. Subsequently, a decision can be brought before the Federal Court.
>> Listen to the interview with Raphaël Mahaim, national counselor (The Greens/VD) and lawyer, in Forum: The Greens are challenging the increase in the retirement age for women: interview with Raphaël Mahaim / Forum / 6 min. / today at 18:02
The Federal Office of Social Insurance has overestimated AHV expenditures for 2033 by about 4 billion francs, it announced on Tuesday. The Swiss Trade Union Union, the Greens, and Socialist Women immediately questioned the vote on raising the retirement age for women from 64 to 65, which was narrowly accepted in 2022.
>> Read also: The Federal Office of Social Insurance is wrong by 4 billion in projections for AHV expenditures and The error in the financial situation calculation of AHV sparks fierce criticism
>> Also see the interview with State Councilor Charles Juillard (The Center/JU) in the 19h30:
The president of the management commission of the Council of States responds to the mishap regarding the AHV / 19h30 / 2 min. / today at 19:30
Two Criteria
In the past, the Federal Court has been very restrictive regarding the annulment of federal votes. It is necessary that the margin is narrow and that the contested vote does not date back too far. The increase in the retirement age for women from 64 to 65 was accepted in September 2022 by a very narrow majority of 50.5% in favor, thus both criteria would be met.
>> Read more: Re-voting on women’s retirement at 65, a scenario unlikely but not excluded
Another criterion concerns the severity of the irregularity. With the 4 billion franc error in the long-term expense estimation of the AHV, this condition would also be met, estimates Geneva lawyer and doctor in constitutional law Camilla Jacquemoud, who had looked in detail at the only federal vote annulled to date.
“Of course, the severity of the irregularity depends on an assessment by the Federal Court,” she said in La Matinale on RTS. “However, it seems to me that it could be admitted insofar as it concerns an element that was central to the formation of popular will, namely the deficit of the AHV, which was nonetheless the reason for the reform.”
>> Listen to the topic in La Matinale: After the calculation error in the AHV, the public must re-vote on the retirement age for women, say the Socialist Women / La Matinale / 2 min. / today at 06:24
Legal Certainty
There remains one last condition and not the least: that of legal certainty. The Federal Court is indeed more willing to annul votes that have not yet taken effect, because they have not yet come into force.
Since its establishment in 1848, the Federal Court has annulled the result of a popular vote only once. In 2019, the High Court invalidated the vote on the PDC initiative “No to penalizing marriage,” which had not yet come into force, because the Federal Council had provided erroneous information during the campaign.
Another appeal against a vote had already been submitted to the Federal Court in the past. The Socialist Party demanded the annulment of the vote on the second part of the corporate tax reform, narrowly accepted in 2008, arguing that the Federal Council had severely underestimated the decrease in tax revenues for the Confederation.
However, the judges of Mon Repos rejected this appeal citing legal certainty. Indeed, the reform had already come into force.
>> Also see the explanations from Matthieu Hoffstetter, journalist, in the 19h30:
Mishap regarding the AHV: explanations from Matthieu Hoffstetter / 19h30 / 1 min. / today at 19:30
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