She received more votes than any SVP member: the Badran phenomenon

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Jacqueline Badran (61) left everyone behind her on Sunday. The SP National Councilor from Zurich received 150,529 votes – more than anyone in Switzerland.

It was expected that a woman from Zurich would become the queen of the vote. After all, more than one in six eligible voters lives in the canton of Zurich. But an SP politician? This is a novelty. Albert Rösti (56), Roger Köppel (58), Natalie Rickli (46), Ueli Maurer (72) and Christoph Blocher (83): The SVP has always been able to celebrate the record number of votes over the past 30 years. But now Badran has surpassed the best-elected SVP member, Gregor Rutz (51), by more than 10,000 votes.

The Badran Paradox

The brilliant re-election is the current highlight of Badran’s political career. The IT entrepreneur from Zurich entered parliament in 2011 and quickly became one of the SP’s best-known figures. And one of the most infamous.

It is the Badran paradox: while the National Councilor enjoys great popularity far beyond party lines, the biologist (specialized in neurology and behavioral research) is feared by many in the federal parliament. Not only does she publicly shame journalists, but she also shames her fellow party members when she feels that the other person – unlike herself – has no idea about the subject. And that is actually almost always the case.

“You don’t have to grin so stupidly”

In public, it is precisely this direct, often gruff manner that makes her so popular. “You don’t have to grin so stupidly,” she once snarled at a Corona skeptic in the SRF “Arena”. She doesn’t care what others think of her. That makes it authentic.

Badran is the politician from Zurich who received the most votes from other parties. She even enjoys sympathy from the SVP, even though she caused the party to suffer defeat in the elections more than once. The two really celebrated their friendship with former Federal Councilor Ueli Maurer (72) in the National Council (Maurer: “We almost love each other a little.”).

Forced to take a break from politics

It’s not always just the others that Badran’s peers get on his nerves. In 2022, the Zurich woman had to take a break for several months because she was involved in the attack. The GP had to give her the rate, she said.

“Does anyone actually miss Jacqueline Badran?” SVP Councilor Andreas Glarner (61) asked on Twitter during her absence. The 150,000 votes in Zurich this Sunday are a clear answer.

Source:Blick