Swiss Invention Helps Tibet's Diaspora Make Election Choices

(MENAFN- Swissinfo) The online voting advice tool Smartvote Tibet was used 13,000 times during the 2026 elections for the Tibetan parliament in exile – equivalent to more than a fifth of the votes cast. Swiss-Tibetan political scientist Palmo Brunner explains why the initiative matters, and what happened when it was hit by a cyberattack at a crucial moment. This content was published on September 4, 2026 - 09:00 9 minutes

As a reporter I cover developments in democracy where the Swiss perspective becomes relevant. I am Swiss and have long been fascinated by the way public discussions shape society.

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Deutsch de Smartvote: Schweizer Erfindung hilft Tibets Diaspora beim Wahlentscheid Original Read more: Smartvote: Schweizer Erfindung hilft Tibets Diaspora beim Wahlents Français fr Smartvote, l'invention suisse qui aide la diaspora tibétaine à faire son choix électoral Read more: Smartvote, l'invention suisse qui aide la diaspora tibétaine à faire son choix élec 中文 zh 瑞士开发的Smartvote为流亡藏人选举提供参考 Read more: 瑞士开发的Smartvote为流亡藏人选

Smartvote was originally developed in Switzerland to help voters make their electoral choices. Today, the tool and similar online voting advice apps are used in many democracies around the world, including in one democracy without a country: the Tibetan exile community.

In 2026, Smartvote Tibet was used for the second time. It generated around 13,000 voting recommendations. That is a significant number: some 51,000 Tibetans in exile cast their ballots in the parliamentary primaries in February, while just over 41,000 voted in the main elections two months later. The 13,000 Smartvote users cannot, however, be equated directly with 13,000 voters. Anyone, whether eligible to vote or not, can complete the questionnaire more than once.

“Most of the traffic came from the main regions where Tibetans in the diaspora live: India, Europe and North America,” says the Swiss-Tibetan political scientist Palmo Brunner, who is part of the volunteer team behind Smartvote Tibet.

Users complete a questionnaire on political issues and receive an overview showing how closely each candidate's positions match their own. That is the principle behind Smartvote. Brunner says the aim is to“contribute to informed decision-making” while encouraging as many Tibetans in exile as possible to vote.

This also strengthens the system's legitimacy.“Political participation is important to us, but so is strengthening democratic institutions – and the two are connected.”

Chinese repression

Around 150,000 Tibetans live in exile. They can register to vote and, every five years, elect members of the Tibetan parliament in exile as well as the Sikyong, the head of the Tibetan government in exile.

The millions of Tibetans living in authoritarian China cannot take part in these elections. Repression there is considerable. According to UN human rights experts, Chinese programmes have relocated or forcibly settled around 3.36 million TibetansExternal link over the past 25 years.

The mere existence of a democratic government in exile challenges“the People's Republic of China's narrative”, which denies“that Tibet was once an independent state with its own legitimate government”, says Lobsang Sangay, a legal scholar who served as Sikyong from 2012 to 2021.

He describes the task of reaching and coordinating such a geographically dispersed population as a“constant logistical challenge”, requiring extensive travel.

Sangay sees the Tibetan government in exile as a model. It is, he says,“the only fully functioning and arguably the most effective government-in-exile in the contemporary world”.

But what can a government in exile actually achieve?“It works to preserve Tibetan identity and defend human rights,” Brunner says. Beyond its symbolic importance, however, it also deals with highly practical issues.“In the traditional exile settlements in India, this includes promoting Tibetan schools or funding medical treatment.”

The work of the government in exile is financed to a small extent through a voluntary tax paid by Tibetans. It depends largely on foreign assistance, particularly from the United States. This, too, was the subject of a question in the online voting tool, as some politicians want to increase contributions from Tibetans in exile in order to reduce dependence on international funding.

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