Society Immigration polarizes opinions in Switzerland particularly strongly

Immigration, support for Ukraine and pandemic measures are particularly polarizing opinions and emotions in Switzerland. This was revealed by a survey of 2,500 voters in German-speaking and French-speaking Switzerland published on Monday.

70 percent of respondents feel that social cohesion has declined in recent years. More than half of the population would like to see immigration restricted, the think tank Pro Futuris of the Swiss Society for the Common Good and the Mercator Foundation announced on Monday. A large proportion of Swiss people have strong antipathies towards those who advocate easing immigration.

More than half of the electorate believe that restrictions on individual freedom are necessary to combat pandemics. A quarter reject such restrictions, the report continued.

The least emotionally polarized population is when it comes to the structure of the welfare state, equality for women and the protection of sexual minorities. The population attaches great importance to the welfare state and equality. "More people want an expansion than a reduction of welfare state benefits, even at the cost of higher taxes," wrote Pro Futuris.

On average, SVP and SP voters are more emotional, polarized and show antipathy towards the opposing position. Similarly, older generations and politically active people tend to be strongly emotionally polarized.

According to the survey, people who are involved in voluntary work and have a high level of trust in the government and media are less emotionally polarized. SVP voters consider themselves the least willing to compromise compared to other party voters. According to the survey, younger people are the most willing to compromise.

SDA