Knowledge on a Democratic “Silence”: Conflicting Expertise on the Decline in Voter Turnout in Postwar Switzerland (1940s–1980s)

Abstract

Who gets to interpret why “ordinary” citizens abstain from voting? Usually perceived as a model democracy, Switzerland already experienced declining turnout rates from the 1960s onward, which worried elites and gave way to a political demand for expertise on nonvoting. Focusing on scientific studies and media pieces, this article charts the emergence of various (and possibly conflicting) forms of knowledge and interpretative frameworks on electoral turnout in postwar Switzerland, as well as their circulation in the public sphere and their potential influence on political action. Against all odds, the numerous academic and commercial studies dedicated to this topic did little to quell the relative helplessness of politicians and journalists. In fact, the decline in turnout fundamentally challenged dominant representations of civic behavior and political participation, which centered on voting and was modeled on the ideal of a (male) citizen-soldier.