Ah, Switzerland—home of chocolate, watches, and… Eurovision drama? Yep, it turns out not everyone is jazzed about hosting the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 in Basel. The Federal Democratic Union of Switzerland (EDU) is up in arms, calling Eurovision a “propaganda event” that celebrates satanism and occultism. You read that right—according to them, a few horned dancers and a pentagram in a Bambie Thug performance has officially tipped Eurovision over into demonic territory.
Your votes please
EDU’s crusade against Eurovision has taken the form of a referendum. They’re aiming to block the CHF 34.9 million ($41.3 million) loan approved by Basel’s cantonal parliament to host the event at St. Jakobshalle from May 13 to 17, 2025. The loan passed by an overwhelming 87 votes to 4, but the EDU and its president, Daniel Frischknecht (pictured), have kicked off a signature collection campaign to bring the issue to the ballot box. Because if anything’s scarier than Eurovision, it’s direct democracy.
Their goal? Collect 2,000 certified signatures by October 26, which would trigger a public vote on November 24 to potentially kill Eurovision’s Swiss dreams. The Basel cantonal gazette officially published the notice, marking the start of what is sure to be an eye-roll-worthy signature-collecting marathon.
Fever dreams
While EDU’s claims that Eurovision is pushing occultism and “intellectual decline” sound like the fever dreams of someone who hasn’t quite recovered from Lordi’s win in 2006, the party is confident Basel’s residents will rally behind them. Because apparently, nothing says “clean living” like denying your country the chance to host one of the world’s biggest live music events.
Meanwhile, the Swiss People’s Party (SVP) is also grumbling about Eurovision. Their youth wing claims the contest has crossed a line by embracing a “third gender” and featuring performances they consider “anti-Semitic”. (We’re guessing this has something to do with Nemo, the first non-binary artist to win Eurovision, and the pro-Palestinian protests that popped up in Malmö during the 2024 contest.)
The songs keep coming
But while these conservative voices do their best to whip up a frenzy, SRF—Switzerland’s national broadcaster—keeps trucking along with preparations. They’ve received 431 song submissions for Switzerland’s Eurovision 2025 entry. With the pressure of hosting, whoever is picked will have the daunting task of following up Nemo’s victory with “The Code.”
Despite the outcry, the smart money is on Basel hosting a fabulous Eurovision 2025. After all, most of Basel’s political establishment is behind the event, and unless those 2,000 signatures magically appear, the show will go on. But if Eurovision 2025 really does get blocked by a pentagram-fearing referendum? Well, at least Switzerland will have proven one thing: they take direct democracy seriously—even when it’s about sequins, key changes, and a supposed satanic agenda.