Swiss voters set to reject plan to cut funding for state broadcaster

Takamiya

08/03/2026 13:10

ZURICH, March 8 (Reuters) - Swiss voters looked set on Sunday to reject a referendum to slash public broadcaster SRG’s funding, with early projections showing 62% opposing a plan to cut the annual licence fee, a move critics warned would weaken media and fuel disinformation.

The campaign wanted to reduce the annual licence fee that all Swiss households must pay from 335 Swiss francs ($431.87) to 200 francs.

Supporters, mainly from right-wing groups including the Swiss People's Party (SVP), had argued that the charge – the highest in the world – was too expensive, while SRG, which runs 17 radio stations and seven TV channels in four languages had become too bloated.

Opponents had said the move reflected pressure on public media organisations from the political right, which has accused national broadcasters globally of being politically biased against them.

($1 = 0.7757 Swiss francs)

 (Reporting by John Revill; Editing by Bernadette Baum)

 ((John.Revill@thomsonreuters.com; +41 41 528 36 37; Reuters Messaging: john.revill.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))