SWITZERLAND

LAST ELECTIONS

Also available: Archive of past election results for this chamber

Chamber:

Ständerat - Conseil des Etats - Consiglio degli Stati

Dates of election / renewal (from/to):

21 October 2007

25 November 2007

Purpose of elections:

Elections were held for all the seats in the Council of States on the normal expiry of the members' term of office.

Background and outcome of elections:

On 21 October 2007, elections were held for all 200 seats in the National Council and 41 of the 46 seats in the Council of States (see note).

In the previous elections held in 2003, the right-wing Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC), personified by the charismatic billionaire Mr. Christoph Blocher, came in first with 55 seats in the National Council, followed by the Socialist Party (SP/PS) with 52 seats. The Radical-Democratic Party (FDP/PRD), the Christian-Democratic People's Party (CVP/PDC), and the Green Party (GPS/PES) won 36, 28, and 13 seats respectively. The remainder went to small parties. These main parties, except for the GPS/PES, also gained seats in the Council of States. The CVP/PDC came in first with 15 seats, followed by the FDP/PRD with 14 seats. The SP/PS and the SVP/UDC took nine and eight seats respectively.

In 2007, 3,089 candidates, including 1,088 women (up from 993 in the last elections in 2003), contested the elections to the National Council, while 130 candidates, including 32 women (up from 26), ran for the Council of States.

The SVP/UDC has moreover taken up its usual discourse of cutting taxes, keeping Switzerland out of the European Union and addressing the issue of exploitation of the country's social and asylum policies. The election campaign was marked by an SVP/UDC poster showing a black sheep being kicked out of Switzerland by three white sheep.

Other parties also used their traditional election platforms, with the Socialists (SP/PS) calling for social security and solidarity, the Radical Democrats (FDP/PRD) urging further economic growth based on creativity and efficiency and the Christian Democrats (CVP/PDC) pledging to ensure job opportunities. The Greens (GPS/PES) campaigned for combating climate change, calling for a ban on air shows in the country and the introduction of a jet fuel surcharge. Due to a series of national disasters that have hit the country in recent years, environmental issues reportedly attracted the attention of many citizens.

In all, 48.28 per cent of the country's 4.9 million eligible voters turned out at the polls, marking the highest turnout figure since 1983.

In the elections to the National Council, the SVP/UDC and the GPS/PES made the biggest gains (seven seats each), bringing their seats to 62 and 20 respectively. The SVP/UDC obtained the largest share of seats in this chamber since the country's proportional voting system started in 1919. The CVP/PDC also added three seats to its tally, winning 31 in all. On the contrary, the SP/PS, which took 43 seats, suffered a major defeat, losing nine. The FDP/PRD also lost five, winning 31 seats. The remainder went to small parties. In all, 59 women were elected to the National Council. A 45-year-old lawyer, Mr. Ricardo Lumengo, of Angolan origin (Socialist Party), was elected to the National Council, becoming the first black person to enter the Swiss Parliament.

In the elections to the Council of States, 29 (including six women) of the 41 members were elected in the first round. The CVP/PDC came in first with eight seats, followed by the FDP/PRD and the SVP/UDC with seven seats each. The SP/PS took six seats. The GPS/PES won its first seat in this chamber. After the first round, other candidates withdrew in favour of the second leading candidate in the cantons of Fribourg and Valais. Run-off elections were thus held in six cantons for a total of ten seats.

The final results gave the CVP/PDC 12 seats, followed by the FDP/PRD with 10. The SP/PS and the SVP/UDC took nine and seven seats respectively. The GPS/PES and another Green party, the Zurich Liberal Green Party (GLP/PEL), took two and one seat each.

The newly elected parliament held its first session on 3 December. The National Council elected Mr. André Bugnon (SVP/UDC) as its new Speaker, while the Council of States elected Mr. Christoffel Brändli (SVP/UDC) as its new President.

On 12 December, the parliament voted to elect the seven members of the Federal Council (government) for a four-year term. Since 1959, the Federal Council has comprised representatives of the four major parties: the SVP/UDC, the PS/SP, the FDP/PRD and the CVP/PDC. In a surprise move, the most influential SVP/UDC member, Christoph Blocher, was not re-elected, the Federal Assembly having chosen a woman SVP/UDC member over him. Following that decision, the SVP/UDC placed itself on the opposition benches and expelled its two representatives from the SVP/UDC parliamentary group. The two members, however, still sit on the Federal Council as SVP/UDC members.

Note on the "Distribution of Seats (Council of States)"
"Others" refer to the five seats in the Council of States which were decided prior to the general election date:
The following half-cantons had elected their representatives prior to this date.
Zoug: Two male representatives (one each from the CVP/PDC and the FDP/PRD) elected on 29 October 2006.
Appenzell Rhodes-Int: one male representative (CVP/PDC) elected on 29 April 2007 through "Landsgemeinde" (cantonal assembly of citizens).
Nidwald: one male representative (CVP/PDC) elected tacitly on 4 September 2007.
Obwald: one male representative (FDP/PRD) elected tacitly on 24 September 2007.
The representatives from Zoug and Appenzell Rhodes-Int had been sworn before the 2007 general elections. They will take up their posts until the next general elections, scheduled for 2010.

Election results for the second round
Neuchâtel (two seats): SP/PS 1, FDP/PRD 1
Tessin (two seats): FDP/PRD 1, CVP/PDC 1
Vaud (two seats): SP/PS 1, GPS/PES 1
Lucerne (one seat): CVP/PDC 1
Saint-Gall (two Seats): CVP/PDC 1, FDP/PRD 1
Zurich (one seat): GLP/PEL 1

STATISTICS


Round no 1 (21 October 2007): Election results
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes


Round no 2 (11 November 2007): Election results
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes



Round no 1: Distribution of votes

Political Group	Candidates	Votes	%
Christian-Democratic People's Party (CVP/PDC)
Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC)
Socialist Party (SP/PS)
Radical-Democratic Party (FDP/PRD)
Green Party (GPS/PES)
Zurich Liberal Green Party (GLP/PEL)



Round no 2: Distribution of votes

Political Group	Candidates	Votes	%
Radical-Democratic Party (FDP/PRD)
Christian-Democratic People's Party (CVP/PDC)
Socialist Party (SP/PS)
Green Party (GPS/PES)
Zurich Liberal Green Party (GLP/PEL)
Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC)

Round no 1: Distribution of seats

Political Group

Total

Total 1st & 2nd

Others

Grand total

Number of women

Christian-Democratic People's Party (CVP/PDC)

Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC)

Socialist Party (SP/PS)

Radical-Democratic Party (FDP/PRD)

Green Party (GPS/PES)

Zurich Liberal Green Party (GLP/PEL)


Round no 2: Distribution of seats

Political Group	Total	Total 1st & 2nd	Others	Grand total	Number of women
Radical-Democratic Party (FDP/PRD)	3	10	2	12	3
Christian-Democratic People's Party (CVP/PDC)	3	12	3	15	1
Socialist Party (SP/PS)	2	9	0	9	5
Green Party (GPS/PES)	1	1	0	1	1
Zurich Liberal Green Party (GLP/PEL)	1	2	0	2	0
Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC)	0	7	0	7	0

Comments:

Sources:
- http://www.politik-stat.ch/srw2007CH_fr.html
- Federal Assembly (22.02.2008)

Distribution of seats according to sex:

Men:

Women:

Percent of women:

21.74

Distribution of seats according to age:


31 to 40 years	2
41 to 50 years	6
51 to 60 years	24
61 to 70 years	14

Distribution of seats according to profession:

Legal professions		15
Professions related to political activities		7
Unknown		5
Consultants (including real estate agents)		4
Entrepreneurs		4
Educators		3
Civil/public servants/administrators (including social/development workers)		2
Media-related professions (journalists/publishers)		2
Farmers/agricultural workers (including wine growers)		1
Medical professions (doctors, dentists, nurses)		1
Business/trade/industry employees, including executives		1
Bankers (including invest bankers)/accountants		1

Also available: Archive of past election results for this chamber

Choose one of the thematic modules below for further information grouped by category. Alternatively, you can access the full text of the PARLINE data about this parliament (downloading will take longer).