Magic formula (Swiss politics)

Last updated
The 2024 Swiss Federal Council Bundesratsfoto 2024.jpg
The 2024 Swiss Federal Council

In Swiss politics, the magic formula (German : Zauberformel, French : formule magique, Italian : formula magica, Romansh : furmla magica) is an arithmetic formula for dividing the seven executive seats on the Federal Council among the four coalition parties. The formula was first applied in 1959. It gave the Free Democratic Party (now FDP.The Liberals), the Catholic Conservative Party (later Christian Democratic People's Party, now The Centre) and the Social Democratic Party two seats each, while the Party of Farmers, Traders and Independents (now the Swiss People's Party) received one seat. [1]

Contents

The formula is not a legal requirement but the result of an agreement among the four large coalition parties. After the 2003 general election, the formula was modified, giving two seats to the SVP/UDC at the expense of the Christian Democrats. [2] This was because the Swiss People's Party received 29% of the votes in the election, making it Switzerland's largest party by vote share.

History

After the election of Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf to the Federal Council in Autumn 2007, she was expelled from the SVP/UDC because she had taken the seat of Christoph Blocher, the unofficial leader of the SVP. The SVP's other member of the Council, Samuel Schmid followed her, as he, too, was no longer supported by his own party. They then led the establishment of the new Conservative Democratic Party of Switzerland (BDP/PBD). Due to this change, the two seats previously allocated to the SVP/UDC now went to the BDP, although it had only a handful of seats in Parliament. [3]

On 12 November 2008, Schmid resigned from his post as Defense Minister. He was replaced in a vote that took place on 10 December 2008 by Ueli Maurer from the SVP/UDC, giving the party back one of its two magic formula seats.

Soon after the 2015 Swiss federal election, Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf, a member of the Conservative Democratic Party (BDP), announced that she would not run for re-election to the Federal Council after the Swiss People's Party (SVP) won a record 29.4% of the vote, while her own party received 4.1% of the vote. [4] [5] The SVP was widely expected to fill her seat in the election, and Guy Parmelin, of the SVP, was ultimately elected on December 9. [6]

With the merger at the start of 2021 of the Christian Democratic People's Party (CVP) and the BDP [7] the resulting party, The Centre, gained the former CVP's seat on the Council.

Current formula

This is the composition of the Federal Council after the 2023 Swiss Federal Council election.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Federal Council (Switzerland)</span> Federal government of Switzerland

The Federal Council is the federal cabinet of the Swiss Confederation. Its seven members also serve as the collective head of state and government of Switzerland. Since after World War II, the Federal Council is by convention a permanent grand coalition government composed of representatives of the country's major parties and language regions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samuel Schmid</span> 88th President of the Swiss Confederation

Samuel Schmid is a Swiss politician who served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council from 2000 to 2008. He was the head of the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sports.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swiss People's Party</span> Swiss political party

The Swiss People's Party, also known as the Democratic Union of the Centre, is a national conservative and right-wing populist political party in Switzerland. Chaired by Marcel Dettling, it is the largest party in the Federal Assembly, with 62 members of the National Council and 6 of the Council of States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland</span> Former Swiss political party

The Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland, also called the Christian Democratic Party, Democratic People's Party and Swiss Christian Democratic Party, was a Christian democratic political party in Switzerland. On 1 January 2021, it merged with the Conservative Democratic Party of Switzerland (BDP/PBD) to form The Centre, which now operates at the federal level. The Christian Democratic People's Party will continue to exist at the cantonal level as individual local and regional parties determine their status.

On December 12, 2007, all seven members of the Federal Council, the government of Switzerland, were elected by the joint chambers of the Federal Assembly for the 2008–2012 term of office. Councillors are elected individually by an absolute majority of votes, with the incumbent councillors defending their seats in descending order of seniority.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf</span> 92nd President of the Swiss Confederation

Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf is a Swiss politician and lawyer who served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council from 2008 to 2015. A member of the Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC) until 2008, she was then a member of the splinter Conservative Democratic Party (BDP/PBD) until 2021, when that party merged into The Centre. Widmer-Schlumpf was the head of the Federal Department of Justice and Police from 2008 to 2010, when she became head of the Federal Department of Finance. She served as President of the Swiss Confederation in 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conservative Democratic Party of Switzerland</span> Swiss political party

The Conservative Democratic Party of Switzerland was a conservative political party in Switzerland from 2008 to 2020. After the 2019 federal election, the BDP had three members in the National Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Swiss Federal Council election</span>

On 10 December 2008, the Swiss Federal Assembly elected Ueli Maurer as successor to Federal Councillor Samuel Schmid. Schmid resigned on 12 November 2008 after a number of controversies, officially citing health and personal reasons. Maurer took office on 1 January 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ueli Maurer</span> 93rd President of the Swiss Confederation

Ulrich "Ueli" Maurer is a Swiss politician who served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council from 2009 to 2022. A member of the Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC), he was President of the Swiss Confederation in 2013 and 2019. Formerly head of the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sports (2009–2015), Maurer has headed the Federal Department of Finance from 2016 to 2022. From 2019 to 2022, he was the longest-serving sitting member of the Federal Council.

A by-election to the Swiss Federal Council was held in Switzerland on 16 September 2009, after incumbent Federal Councillor Pascal Couchepin announced his intention to retire on 31 October 2009.

Two by-elections to the Swiss Federal Council were held in Switzerland on 22 September 2010, after federal councillors Moritz Leuenberger (SP) and Hans-Rudolf Merz announced they would step down from the Federal Council towards the end of the year. The by-elections resulted in the elections of Simonetta Sommaruga from the SP and Johann Schneider-Ammann from the FDP, resulting in no change in the partisan composition of the council. It also resulted in the first majority of women on the Federal Council in its history, with Sommaruga joining Micheline Calmy-Rey, Doris Leuthard and Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf.

An election for all seven members of the Federal Council, the government of Switzerland, was held on 14 December 2011, following the federal election on 23 October 2011. Micheline Calmy-Rey announced she would not run for re-election to the council. According to a traditional informal convention, the successor has to come from the French-speaking or Italian-speaking part of Switzerland. The candidates for her post announced by their respective cantonal sections are Alain Berset (Fribourg), Pierre-Yves Maillard (Vaud), Stéphane Rossini (Valais), and Marina Carobbio (Ticino).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Swiss federal election</span>

Federal elections were held in Switzerland on 18 October 2015 for the National Council and the first round of elections to the Council of States, with runoff elections to the Council of States being held in various cantons until 22 November.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guy Parmelin</span> 98th President of Switzerland

Guy Bernard Parmelin is a Swiss Federal Councillor and head of the Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research. A member of the Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC), he has been a member of the Federal Council since 2016, and has led the Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research since 2019. He previously led the Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sports between 2016 and 2018. He served as president of Switzerland in 2021, having previously served as vice president of Switzerland in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Swiss Federal Council election</span>

An election for all seven members of the Federal Council, the Government of Switzerland, was held on 9 December 2015, following the federal election on 19 October 2015, for the 2016–2020 term.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Viola Amherd</span> 98th President of the Swiss Confederation since 2024

Viola Patricia Amherd is a Swiss politician who has served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council since 2019, and as President of the Swiss Confederation for 2024 since 1 January. She is the head of the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport. Amherd was a member of the Christian Democratic People's Party (CVP/PDC) before it merged with the Conservative Democratic Party (BDP/PBD) to form The Centre (DM/LC) in 2021, which she joined.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Centre (political party)</span> Political party in Switzerland

The Centre is a centre-right political party in Switzerland. It was formed through the merger of the Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland (CVP/PDC) and the Conservative Democratic Party of Switzerland (BDP/PBD). Following the formal merger of the parties on 1 January 2021, it has 28 of 200 seats in the National Council and 13 of 46 seats in the Council of States. Viola Amherd is the party's representative on the Federal Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 Swiss Federal Council election</span>

By-elections to the Swiss Federal Council were held on 5 December 2018, after federal councillors Johann Schneider-Ammann (FDP-BE) and Doris Leuthard (CVP-AG) announced in September they would leave the Council effective 31 December of the same year.

References

  1. "Formule magique" (in French). Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse. Archived from the original on 7 March 2012. Retrieved 8 May 2012.
  2. "Federal councillors and their parties". Swiss Government. Archived from the original on 2 March 2022. Retrieved 9 March 2022.
  3. Pierre Cormon, Swiss Politics for Complete Beginners Archived 2014-11-04 at the Wayback Machine , Editions Slatkine, 2014, ISBN   978-2-8321-0607-5, p. 46
  4. Jaberg, Samuel; Stephens, Thomas (October 28, 2015). "Finance Minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf to Stand Down". Swissinfo . Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved April 5, 2016.
  5. Geiser, Urs (October 19, 2015). "Parliament Shifts to the Right". Swissinfo . Archived from the original on October 18, 2015. Retrieved April 5, 2016.
  6. Mombelli, Armando (December 10, 2015). "People's Party Gains Second Seat in Cabinet". Swissinfo . Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved April 5, 2016.
  7. "Die CVP heisst endgültig "Die Mitte" – und fusioniert mit der BDP" (in German). SRF. 2020-11-28.