ABSTRACT
The referendum process and its outcome may be distorted by misinformation originating from public authorities or officials, as well as from private organizations and individuals. In these cases, judicial remedies exist in Switzerland before or after referenda, notably depending on the time when misinformation is discovered. Five principles govern the dissemination of information when it originates from public authorities and officials: Completeness, objectivity, transparency, accuracy, and proportionality. If part of the information is uncertain because it is based on assumptions, authorities must be cautious and transparent in this regard. The violation of one of these principles may lead to the invalidation of the vote. However, courts must also evaluate the impact on the vote results. The misinformation in question must have been able to influence citizens’ votes and thus the referendum results. As far as misinformation by private organizations and individuals is concerned, the possibility to appropriately rebut or verify it should be considered as the decisive criterion. As long as it exists or has existed, referenda should, in principle, neither be postponed nor invalidated. When neither rebuttal nor fact-checking is possible, for instance, because misinformation was secretly and briefly diffused through social networks to specific individuals, the referendum process may be distorted in an unconstitutional way.
