Attack on the FDP in the Federal Council: these are the possible candidates for the Green Party

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Many rubbed their eyes on Saturday. The Greens want to stand as a candidate for the elections for the Federal Council, they announced at a media conference. During the week many things pointed in a different direction. The Eco Party lost five seats in the National Council in last Sunday’s elections and now has 23 seats. They lost 3.4 percentage points of voter share nationally.

Who could now jump over his shadow and make himself available for a candidacy that initially seems unlikely to succeed? We already have a shortlist, says party chairman Balthasar Glättli (51). He himself did not want to comment to Blick on the question of whether he was considering his own candidacy.

Blick shows which candidates would be eligible for a green candidacy.

“I do not rule out running as a candidate,” State Councilor Mathias Zopfi (39) told Blick. When it comes to environmental issues, he becomes more politicized to the left, while when it comes to economic and financial issues, he becomes more civilly politicized. Without this pragmatic attitude, he would never have reached Federal Bern as the Green Party. Zopfi represents the canton of Glarus in the Council of States, a deeply bourgeois place on the Swiss political map. If he gets a ticket for the Green Party, his political orientation could be an advantage.

Bernese education director Christine Häsler (60) is often regarded as the first Green Federal Council member. She has a lot of experience thanks to a long political career: member of the Great Council of Bern in 2002, group leader of the canton in 2006, national councilor from 2015 to 2018 and since then director of education and culture in the canton of Bern. And she won all these elections in the country. Like Zopfi, she is pragmatic.

Bernhard Pulver (58) comes from the same canton. He also knows how to rule. From 2006 to 2018 he was education director in the canton of Bern. His disadvantage: he has never sat in the Federal Parliament – and as a Green candidate for the Council of States he did not achieve a great result on Sunday. Even if he gets on the ticket now, Albert Rösti (56) could become an obstacle. Because he is already a Bernese in the executive branch.

The canton of Zurich is currently not represented in the state government. This is where Zurich government councilor Martin Neukom (37) comes in handy to make Bern’s most populous canton heard again. As chairman of the Young Greens of Switzerland, he became involved in politics at a young age. No one expected his election to the government council in 2019. Neukom is considered a political high-flyer. However, he has never been part of the national parliament and therefore has poor connections in Bern.

Brigit Wyss (63) was national councilor from 2007 to 2011 and since 2017 government councilor of Solothurn and head of the Ministry of Economic Affairs. She was already a candidate for the Federal Council in 2010, when she entered the race as successor to Hans-Rudolf Merz (80). She was then defeated. That could militate against her running for office again.

Last year, Geneva’s young and well-connected State Councilor Liza Mazzone (35) was repeatedly touted as a candidate for the Federal Council. The Council of States represents the canton of Geneva. That would speak in favor of a candidacy, because the big cities are no longer represented in the state government. However, she failed to win re-election on Sunday. She must fight for re-election in the second round of voting. Does she still have time to apply for the Federal Council?

Candidates for a seat on the Federal Council for the Greens can be submitted until next Friday. A week later, on November 10, the group will meet for an extraordinary meeting and decide who should stand as candidates.

Source:Blick