Legislative Election in Switzerland (1851)

The elections were held according to federal law adopted on December 21, 1850. 120 deputies of the National Council were elected in 49 single and multi-member constituencies. The distribution of mandates was proportional to the population: one parliament seat for 20 thousand citizens ^[2] . Compared to the previous elections of 1848, the number of constituencies was reduced from 52 to 49, and the number of Council seats increased from 111 to 120. The cantons of Argau , Glarus , Lucerne (canton) , Neuchâtel (canton) , Vaud (canton) and Zurich received one place more, and the canton of Bern increased representation by 3 places. Federal Law of 1850 set the date for elections on the last Sunday of October and introduced a three-year term for the National Council.

Voting was conducted according to the system in three rounds. In the first and second rounds, the candidate had to get an absolute majority of votes to be elected; in the third round, a simple majority was enough. Each subsequent round was held after the exclusion of the candidate with the least number of votes ^[2] . In six cantons ( Appenzell-Innerroden , Appenzell-Auserroden , Glarus , Nidwalden , Obvalden and Uri ), members of the National Council were elected by the cantonal councils.