Distinct lack of confrontation apparent so far

In five weeks' time elections to the cantonal government, the cantonal parliament and the councils of the individual municipalities will be held.
 
While this all may be evident from posters of smiling candidates who are only too willing hand out coffee and orange juice, crisps and apples at highly frequented places such as the station and the market, there is very little evidence of cut-and-thrust political debate. It seems all candidates are being far too polite to each other.
 
This lack of soap-box oratory may be explained to some extent by what is being published on social media. Barbara Gysel, the president of the SP party, thinks this is not a bad thing. "It is far better without all the mud-slinging," she said.
 
On the other hand, veteran politician Gerhard Pfister is perturbed by the lack of confrontational debate. "It is in this way the public can be made more aware of the differences between the parties," he said. "The quieter the campaign, the lower the turnout," he said. "And this is not good for parties in the middle."
 
Markus Hürlimann of the SVP party is not so concerned, however, and pointed out the increase in political advertising in the local press. He thinks things will heat up over the remaining weeks though he, too, had to concede that there had been little evidence of hot political debate so far.
 
One other possible reason is that the elections will take place under the majority system for the first time and none of the candidates has experience of this. Surely though, one might expect to hear the arguments for and against the City Tunnel project or what should be done with the site of the former cantonal hospital. According to a journalist of the Neue Zuger Zeitung, perhaps it all as a result the natural reserve of the people of Zug and their predisposition for being nice to each other.
 
The city of Zug may be one exception to this trend as a result of the "non-party" BS14 committee, who want to see more centrist and fewer leftist seats on the city council. Four years ago, the CVP and FDP parties fought so vehemently against each other that, in the end, it was the leftist SP and CSP parties who benefited from it all.
 
For the moment, however, electors in the canton are having to be satisfied by perusing the propaganda distributed with the apples and crisps.