Swiss People's Party Can Do Almost Anything And Still Win

(MENAFN- Swissinfo) The right-wing Swiss People's Party currently dominates Switzerland's political landscape. With a year to go before the federal elections, the party is stronger than ever. It can afford to take risks and expand its support, but this approach is not without potential pitfalls. This content was published on November 10, 2026 - 09:00 9 minutes

I work as editor and correspondent at the Federal Palace. I report on Swiss politics for the Swiss Abroad and manage our political talk show Let's Talk. I started in local journalism in the early nineties and have worked in many journalistic fields, held management positions and covered a range of topics. I joined SWI swissinfo in 2017.

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Deutsch de SVP: Eine Partei kann machen, was sie will – am Ende gewinnt sie immer Original Read more: SVP: Eine Partei kann machen, was sie will – am Ende gewinnt sie Français fr L'UDC, un parti qui peut faire ce qu'il veut et toujours gagner à la fin Read more: L'UDC, un parti qui peut faire ce qu'il veut et toujours gagner à l Italiano it L'UDC, un partito che può permettersi quasi tutto. E che in Svizzera continua a vincere Read more: L'UDC, un partito che può permettersi quasi tutto. E che in Svizzera continua a vi 中文 zh 瑞士人民党为什么这么受欢迎 Read more: 瑞士人民党为什么 Русский ru Швейцарские ((народники)) и их наука побеждать Read more: Швейцарские ((народники)) и их наука побе

On December 9, parliament will elect a new cabinet minister. Guy Parmelin, the current economics minister who also holds the rotating Swiss presidency role, is stepping down. His seat on the Federal Council, Switzerland's executive body, needs to be filled. This has presented his party, the People's Party, with unexpected challenges. For weeks, it has struggled to put forward any potential successors.

“The country's largest party appears to be completely overwhelmed and has failed to prepare for the succession of the Vaud politician in the Federal Council, even though his resignation came as no surprise,” declared an editorial in Le Temps newspaperExternal link last month.

Eight candidates have now entered the race, but many of the party's biggest names have declined to stand. Notably, only two candidates are from French-speaking Switzerland. With the resignation of Parmelin – who comes from canton Vaud – a seat for French-speaking Switzerland is becoming vacant. Traditionally, the western region has been represented by at least two of the seven government seats.

However, French-speaking Switzerland is not the party's stronghold.“The party is particularly strong in German-speaking Switzerland and is also led from there,” says Sean Müller, a political scientist at the University of Bern. As a result, it lacks a pool of candidates from French-speaking Switzerland who meet parliament's criteria.

Potential candidates are generally expected to have leadership or government experience, ideally in a cantonal government, along with a network of political contacts in Bern. Former or current parliamentarians tend to have better chances.

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