Why did the Swiss vote against stricter neutrality?

The Neue Zürcher Zeitung observes:

“Once again, it has become clear that issues of state policy fail to gain traction among voters. Unlike other referendums, however, the Neutrality Initiative was not an abstract matter. It was a reaction to the Federal Council's decision in February 2022 to adopt the sanctions against Russia that the EU had imposed following the attack on Ukraine. In Christoph Blocher's view, with this decision Switzerland made itself a party to the war. Indirectly, the electorate has now supported the Federal Council's course on this issue. Russia's intervention in the referendum campaign proved counterproductive for the initiative's supporters. Switzerland, with its direct democracy, knows how to deal with clumsy attempts to influence the vote.”

Christoph Blocher, a leading figure in the Swiss People's Party and a driving force behind the referendum, has done his cause a disservice, writes Raphaela Birrer, editor-in-chief of the Tages-Anzeiger:

“The clear verdict could now even prove counterproductive to Blocher's core concerns. ... Outside the country, where our debates on direct democracy are closely followed, Switzerland will have to explain why it remains neutral despite the No vote. The more subtle aspects of our domestic politics are unlikely to have been understood internationally. And ultimately, this distorted external perception weakens our neutrality rather than strengthening it, as Christoph Blocher so desperately wanted.”

This was a clear rejection of the Swiss People's Party's proposals, Le Temps stresses:

“Switzerland's leading party has not been winning at the ballot box of late. Broadcasting licence fees, a ten-million-inhabitant limit on the population, neutrality. ... This is its third defeat this year. But this one hits particularly hard. On the one hand because of its clarity, but above all because it touches on the party's core issues: neutrality, sovereignty and independence. The No vote says something about how the Swiss view their place in today's world. A world in flux, in which threats are becoming increasingly clear and in which we, too, are exposed to hybrid warfare.”

Practical benefits take precedent over neutrality, explains La Tribune de Genève:

“The Swiss have clearly opted for 'flexible' neutrality, as it is officially referred to. It could also be described as opportunistic, as it is adapted to the context, the parties involved and our own interests. And, above all, it is guided by the actions of the Western bloc – particularly the US, with the EU serving as a secondary point of reference. This explains why breaches of international law are not in every case sanctioned with the same severity in economic terms. ... In other words, it is a utility-driven neutrality with a variable geometry.”