Ten national referendums were held inSwitzerland in 2018. Voting took place on 4 March, 10 June, 23 September and 25 November.

Two referendums were held on 4 March. One was on a Federal Decree on the new Financial Regulation 2021, which would extend the right of the federal government to levyVAT and direct federal tax until 2035.[1] The other was the "Yes to the abolition of radio and television fees"popular initiative, which proposed abolishing thelicence fee that provides the majority of funding for theSwiss Broadcasting Corporation.[1]
The abolition proposal, known by the informal nameNo Billag, was rejected by theFederal Assembly in 2017.[2] Proponents of the initiative argued it was not fair for everyone to pay the fee regardless of whether they consumed Swiss Broadcasting Corporation output or not, that the total yearly sum of 1.37 billion francs should be spent by consumers, and that theSRG SSR would become more politically independent if it did not depend on the mandatory fee.[3][4] Opponents of the initiative claimed that removing the mandatory fee would threaten national cohesion and that the country would become a "media desert" which would be dangerous to Switzerland's system ofdirect democracy.[3] A committee, "Nein zum Sendeschluss", was formed to oppose the initiative.[3] Opponents received support from 6,000 artists who published an online statement "defending cultural diversity in Switzerland" and argued that cultural diversity would be threatened if the initiative passed.[5] Polls suggested 65 percent would vote against the proposal.[6]
The Federal Decree on the new Financial Regulation 2021 was approved by 84% of votes, while theNo Billag initiative was rejected by 72% of voters.
| Question | For | Against | Invalid/ blank | Total votes | Registered voters | Turnout | Cantons for | Cantons against | Result | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Votes | % | Full | Half | Full | Half | ||||||
| Financial Regulation 2021 | 2,358,086 | 84.1 | 445,464 | 15.9 | 100,497 | 2,904,047 | 5,391,090 | 53.87 | 20 | 6 | 0 | 0 | Approved |
| Abolition of Radio and Television Fees | 833,837 | 28.4 | 2,098,302 | 71.6 | 24,215 | 2,956,354 | 54.84 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 6 | Rejected | |
| Source:Federal Chancellery of Switzerland1,2 | |||||||||||||
Two referendums were held on 10 June; one on the Sovereign Money Initiative proposal and one on the Federal Gambling Act.[7]
The Sovereign Money Initiative proposal aims to give theSwiss National Bank a monopoly onmoney creation.[8] It was launched by the Monetary Modernisation Association, without the support of any political party.[9] The collection of signatures began on 3 June 2014,[8] and theinitiative was submitted to theFederal Chancellery on 1 December 2015 with over 110,000 valid signatures, despite its technical subject and without the support ofpolitical parties or other civil society organizations.[9] TheFederal Assembly recommended rejecting the initiative.
| Question | For | Against | Invalid/ blank | Total votes | Registered voters | Turnout % | Cantons for | Cantons against | Result | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Votes | % | Full | Half | Full | Half | ||||||
| Sovereign Money Initiative | 442,387 | 24.3 | 1,379,540 | 75.7 | 44,042 | 1,865,969 | 5,400,197 | 34.6 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 6 | Rejected |
| Federal Gambling Act | 1,326,207 | 72.9 | 492,024 | 27.1 | 45,723 | 1,863,954 | 34.5 | Approved | |||||
| Source:Federal Chancellery of Switzerland1,2 | |||||||||||||
Three referendums were held on 23 September. The first was aimed at requiring the federal government to consider cycle paths in the same way as footpaths and hiking trails,[10] the second would require the government to promote environmentally sound, animal-friendly and fairly produced foodstuffs,[11] and the third to focus agriculture policy on small, family farms and to promote sustainable, diverse and gene-technology-free agriculture.[12] The cycle paths initiative was approved, whilst the food and agriculture ones were rejected.
| Question | For | Against | Invalid/ blank | Total votes | Registered voters | Turnout % | Cantons for | Cantons against | Result | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Votes | % | Full | Half | Full | Half | ||||||
| Cycle Initiative | 1,475,000 | 73.6 | 529,253 | 26.4 | 24,603 | 2,028,856 | 5,412,449 | 37.5 | 20 | 6 | 0 | 0 | Approved |
| Fair Food Initiative | 774,821 | 38.7 | 1,227,326 | 61.3 | 28,699 | 2,030,846 | 37.5 | 4 | 0 | 16 | 6 | Rejected | |
| Agricultural Policy | 628,301 | 31.6 | 1,358,894 | 68.4 | 40,803 | 2,027,998 | 37.5 | 4 | 0 | 16 | 6 | Rejected | |
| Source:Federal Chancellery of Switzerland1,2,3 | |||||||||||||
Three referendums were held on 25 November. The first proposal aimed to subsidise farmers who did notdehorn their livestock.[13][14][15] The second proposal would have explicitly given theSwiss Federal Constitution precedence overinternational law whenever the two contradict.[16][17] The third initiative would allow insurance companies to hire their own detectives to spy on individuals suspected of abusing social welfare privileges.[18][19][20]
| Question | For | Against | Invalid/ blank | Total votes | Registered voters | Turnout % | Cantons for | Cantons against | Result | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Votes | % | Full | Half | Full | Half | ||||||
| Subsidising farmers not dehorning their livestock | 1,144,845 | 45.3 | 1,384,027 | 54.7 | 89,375 | 2,618,247 | 5,420,789 | 48.3 | 4 | 2 | 16 | 4 | Rejected |
| Giving the Swiss constitution precedence over international law | 872,288 | 33.7 | 1,713,501 | 66.3 | 38,347 | 2,624,136 | 48.4 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 6 | Rejected | |
| Allowing insurance companies to use private detectives | 1,667,849 | 64.7 | 909,172 | 35.3 | 45,370 | 2,622,391 | 48.4 | Approved | |||||
| Source:Federal Chancellery of Switzerland1,2,3 | |||||||||||||