Poll: majority of Swiss oppose purchase of F-35 jets

A majority of the Swiss population says it opposes the purchase of F-35 fighter jets. That is the finding of a survey commissioned by 20 Minuten and Tamedia and carried out by the Leewas research institute, which gathered the views of nearly 11,000 people across all of the country's language regions.

65% of respondents are opposed to the purchase, while 28% are in favour: the gap between opposition and support exceeds 35 percentage points. In detail, 44% of the sample describe themselves as "clearly" opposed and 21% as "rather" opposed. On the other side, only 14% say they are openly in favour of the purchase, while a similar share say they are rather in favour, without expressing clear support.

The survey also looked at how opinions change depending on respondents' political leanings and age.

Support varies from party to party

Opinions differ depending on political affiliation. Opposition is most widespread among supporters of left-wing parties: 80% of those who identify with the SP and 83% of Green party supporters are against the purchase. But opposition is not limited to the left. Among SVP supporters, too, the "no" prevails, at 59%, as it does among Centre party supporters, where the share rises to 58%. The FDP is the only party where the share of those in favour reaches a significant level, at 43%. What all parties have in common is that support for the purchase remains a minority position everywhere, including within the FDP.

Age group does not change the overall picture either. In no age group do supporters outnumber opponents. Opposition is strongest among people aged 50 to 64, where the share of opponents reaches 67%, the highest figure recorded in the survey.