Switzerland is a semi-direct democratic federal republic. The federal legislative power is vested in the two chambers of the Federal Assembly, the National Council and the Council of States. The Federal Council holds the executive power and is composed of seven power-sharing Federal Councillors elected by the Federal Assembly. The judicial branch is headed by the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland, whose judges are elected by the Federal Assembly.
Kaspar Villiger is a Swiss businessman, politician and former member of the Swiss Federal Council (1989–2003).
Flavio Cotti was a Swiss politician and a member of the Federal Council from 1986 to 1999. A member of the Christian Democratic People's Party representing the canton of Ticino, he served as Switzerland's interior minister and foreign minister. In the 1990s, Cotti led the Swiss government's unsuccessful attempts to further Switzerland's political integration into the European Union. He was President of the Confederation in 1991 and 1998.
Jean-Pascal Delamuraz was a Swiss politician and member of the Swiss Federal Council (1983–1998).
René Felber was a Swiss politician. He was a member of the Swiss Federal Council from 1987 to 1993. In 1992, he served as the President of Switzerland.
The Federal Chancellor is the head of the Federal Chancellery of Switzerland, which acts as the general staff of the seven-member Federal Council. The Swiss Chancellor is not a member of the government, and the office of Chancellor is not at all comparable to that of the Chancellor of Germany or the Chancellor of Austria.
The Federal Council is the seven-member executive council that constitutes the federal government of the Swiss Confederation and serves as the collective head of state and government of Switzerland. It meets in the west wing of the Bundeshaus in Bern.
Micheline Anne-Marie Calmy-Rey is a Swiss politician who served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council from 2003 to 2011. A member of the Social Democratic Party (SP/PS), she was the head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs during her tenure as a Federal Councillor. She was President of the Swiss Confederation twice, in 2007 and 2011.
Hans-Rudolf Merz is a Swiss politician who served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council from 2004 to 2010. A member of the Free Democratic Party (FDP/PRD) until the foundation of FDP.The Liberals in 2009, he headed the Federal Department of Finance during his tenure as a Federal Councillor. Merz served as President of the Swiss Confederation in 2009.
The Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research is one of the seven departments of the federal government of Switzerland, headed by a Member of the Swiss Federal Council.
Alain Berset is a Swiss politician serving as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council since 2012. A member of the Social Democratic Party (SP/PS), he has served as head of the Federal Department of Home Affairs since his election.
The Global Leadership Foundation (GLF) is a not-for-profit, non-governmental organisation comprising a network of former heads of state or government and other distinguished leaders who seek to assist developing countries improve governance, bolster democratic institutions and resolve conflicts. The organisation does so by arranging for GLF Members to provide confidential peer-to-peer advice to current heads of governments committed to peace, democracy and development. The Global Leadership Foundation is active across the world. It works by invitation from a head of government and does does not publicize the countries in which it works.
Doris Leuthard is a Swiss politician and lawyer who served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council from 2006 to 2018. A member of the Christian Democratic People's Party (CVP/PDC), she was elected as President of the Swiss Confederation for 2010 and 2017. Leuthard headed the Federal Department of Economic Affairs until 2010, when she became head of the Federal Department of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications. As of 19 December 2019 she is a member of the board of the Kofi Annan Foundation.
Didier Eric Burkhalter is a Swiss politician who served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council from 2009 to 2017. A member of FDP.The Liberals, he was President of the Swiss Confederation in 2014.
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.
Pascal Broulis is a Swiss politician. Since 2002, he has been a member of the Council of State in the canton of Vaud. He heads the cantonal finance department, and has been the President of the Council of State since 2007.
Simonetta Myriam Sommaruga is a Swiss politician who served as President of the Swiss Confederation for 2020. A member of the Social Democratic Party (SP/PS), she has been a Member of the Swiss Federal Council since 2010.
Johann Niklaus Schneider-Ammann is a Swiss businessman and politician who served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council from 2010 to 2018. A member of FDP.The Liberals, he was President of the Swiss Confederation in 2016. Schneider-Ammann headed the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research during his tenure as a Federal Councillor.
The president of the Swiss Confederation, also known as the president of the Confederation or colloquially as the president of Switzerland, is the head of Switzerland's seven-member Federal Council, the country's executive branch. Elected by the Federal Assembly for one year, the officeholder chairs the meetings of the Federal Council and undertakes special representational duties.
François Couchepin is a Swiss lawyer and former politician from the Free Democratic Party of Switzerland (FDP).
