Early vote tally shows Switzerland rejecting bid to cap population at 10 million, a proposal dubbed the ‘Swiss Brexit’

Voters in Switzerland have cast their final ballots on Sunday on an initiative championed by the top right-wing party to cap the rich Alpine country’s population at 10 million. Early results showed Swiss voters were leaning against it. The populist Swiss People’s Party, which has the most seats in parliament, has stirred up and fostered anti-migration sentiment over the years, notably about an influx of workers from the neighboring European Union. Some have dubbed the proposal a “Swiss Brexit” because it could jeopardize Switzerland’s deep ties to the European Union anchored by deals that foster economic growth, cultural ties and cross-border travel, among other things. Switzerland is not one of the EU’s 27 member states, but it is all but surrounded by four of them Recent polling from the gfs.bern agency suggested that it could be a close contest. Preliminary results shared by the federal government showed that nearly 53% of voters rejected the proposal, with nationwide turnout exceeding 57%. Results were still pending from many of Switzerland’s 26 cantons. The number of people living in Switzerland has soared by nearly one-quarter over the last generation, and foreigners today make up nearly one-third of the population. Critics say the boom in migration has brought foreign labor and skills to sectors such as healthcare, finance, pharmaceuticals, and technology. The right-wing party put forward the “sustainability initiative” measure, saying Swiss infrastructure, housing, social programs, natural resources and way of life have been strained by the spike in demographic growth. The federal government, Parliament and EconomieSuisse, a major business association, oppose the idea. In Geneva, Switzerland’s second-largest city and a hub of U.N. institutions and humanitarian groups, early results showed about two-thirds of voters in the region opposed the measure. Maria Lalu, a former diplomatic mission worker from the Philippines who arrived in Switzerland in