On 22 September 2002, the people of Vaud adopted an entirely new cantonal constitution by 55.8% of the vote, replacing the venerable 1885 text. Turnout reached 44.4%. It was the first total revision of the canton's founding charter in one hundred and eighteen years.
The project was the work of a 180-member Constituent Assembly, elected specially in 1999 outside the usual party lines. After three years of work, it adopted its text on 17 May 2002 by 135 votes. The new constitution came into force on 14 April 2003, the symbolic bicentenary of the canton of Vaud joining the Confederation.
The text modernised the institutions and enshrined several hotly debated innovations: a declaration of fundamental rights, sustainable development, a debt brake, a Court of Audit, the reduction of the Grand Council from 200 to 150 members, the extension of the legislature to five years and, above all, the right of foreign residents to vote and stand for election at municipal level.
▲ Yes — 55.8% Accepted cantonwide. The Yes prevailed clearly in urban centres and along the Lake Geneva arc, where foreign-resident voting rights and institutional modernisation appealed. | ▼ No — 44.2% The No remained strong in several rural, conservative districts, where the Ligue vaudoise (a cantonal heritage movement) and the SVP campaigned against foreign voting rights and for the 1885 constitution. |
Actors and personalities
▲ Yes camp • The Constituent Assembly (text adopted by 135 votes) • The Vaud Council of State • The Socialist Party, the Greens and much of the Radical Party (PRD) and the Christian Democrats • The trade unions and the Vaud teachers' association (SPV) | ▼ No camp • The Vaud SVP, which judged the text « not up to the task » • The Ligue vaudoise, attached to the 1885 constitution • Conservative circles opposed to foreign voting rights • On the left, a few voices found the project too timid |
Arguments and verdicts
▲ Arguments FOR (Yes camp) A modern charter anchoring fundamental rights and sustainability « Give the canton a constitution of its time. » — Constituent Assembly Verdict : ✓ Confirmed. The declaration of fundamental rights and the sustainability objective came into force and have served as a foundation since — notably providing the basis for enshrining climate protection in the constitution in 2023. Twenty years on, official reviews and the press judge that the text « holds up » and has absorbed partial revisions without crisis. Source : Canton of Vaud; 24 heures, 2023 Foreign voting rights will strengthen municipal democracy « Local citizenship for those who live here. » Verdict : ✓ Confirmed. Effective from 2003, it made Vaud one of the first cantons to grant it; tens of thousands of foreign residents vote and may be elected at municipal level. The measure became a lasting feature of local political life without major litigation, and was imitated elsewhere in French-speaking Switzerland. Source : Canton of Vaud, political rights of foreigners A Court of Audit and a debt brake for sound finances « Independent oversight of public money. » Verdict : ✓ Confirmed. The Vaud Court of Audit was created and has operated since 2007; the financial provisions accompanied the lasting recovery of the cantonal accounts. The institution regularly publishes audits and has established itself as a recognised oversight body. Source : Court of Audit of the Canton of Vaud | ▼ Arguments AGAINST (No camp) Foreign voting rights would dilute citizenship « We are selling off Vaud citizenship. » — opponents Verdict : ✗~ Largely disproven. The fear did not materialise: foreign residents' turnout remained moderate and did not upset municipal political balances. No upheaval or notable litigation has been documented; the arrangement is now consensual. Source : Canton of Vaud; 10- and 20-year reviews A « catch-all » text that would change nothing « Many words, little effect. » Verdict : ✗~ Partly disproven. Several innovations (Court of Audit, sustainability, foreign voting) had concrete effects; but some tools, such as municipal federations, remained little used. The overall record is positive while confirming that a few mechanisms stayed theoretical. Source : Le Temps; 24 heures, 2008 and 2023 reviews |
Factual record
More than twenty years on, the 2003 constitution has kept its essential promises: institutional modernisation, fundamental rights, foreign voting rights and financial oversight have become reality. The No camp's fears of a « dilution » of citizenship did not come true.
1885→2003 First total revision in 118 years | 55.8% Yes, turnout 44.4% | 200→150 members of the Grand Council | 2003 foreign voting rights at municipal level |
The 2003 Vaud constitution belongs to that rare family of founding texts that age well. Drafted by a Constituent Assembly beyond pure party logic, it won its bet: to modernise without a brutal rupture.
Its most-discussed innovation — municipal voting rights for foreigners — is also the one that best withstood the test of facts. Cast by its opponents as a danger, it proved a peaceful and lasting extension of local democracy.
The No camp's main charge, of a text too ambitious or too vague, held up only in part: while some tools remained theoretical, the overall architecture was able to absorb later revisions, including the climate clause of 2023.