A popular majority is sufficient for a vote on a law or on certain international treaties, which are adopted if the majority of voters vote yes.

Votes on the Federal Constitution or certain important treaties require a double majority. Such a proposal is adopted if the majority of voters say yes to it (popular majority) and the majority of cantons also agree (majority of cantons).  
The voting results in each canton are used to determine whether the majority of the cantons have accepted or rejected a law. If the majority of citizens in a canton vote ‹yes›, the canton is considered to be in favour of the proposal. A cantonal majority is achieved when a majority of cantons vote in favour.

To determine the majority of cantons, each canton provides a Yes or No vote based on its individual voting results. If a majority of voters in a canton voted Yes, the popular vote of that canton counts as a Yes. A cantonal majority means that a majority of the cantons voted Yes. The votes of the former half-cantons of Obwalden, Nidwalden, Basel-Stadt, Basel-Landschaft, Appenzell Ausserrhoden and Appenzell Innerrhoden each count as half a vote.