SVP loses in Council of States elections: triumph for women, more power in the middle

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In any case, party leader Marco Chiesa (49) defended his seat in the Council of States. That was the only bright spot for the SVP on election day. Otherwise, the SVP had to endure a pitch-black Sunday: in Zurich, former GLP national councilor Tiana Angelina Moser (44) defeated her SVP competitor Gregor Rutz (51) by almost 50,000 votes.

In the canton of Solothurn, national councilor Christian Imark (41) also clearly lost to his SP council colleague Franziska Roth (57). This means she can defend the seat of the retiring SP Council member Roberto Zanetti (68).

Minority fear instead of rip-off

And in Aargau – traditionally an SVP canton – centrist national councilor Marianne Binder-Keller (65) reached Stöckli. The canton president defeated Benjamin Giezendanner (41). Like his father Ulrich Giezendanner (70), he is in the National Council for the SVP and, like him, missed the move to the small chamber in 2011. This means that the SVP will lose the seat of the retiring Hansjörg Knecht (63).

In Schaffhausen you really have to speak of an SP coup. Independent aging expert Simon Stocker (42) won the seat of the Council of States for the comrades. Above all, he dethroned the swindler Thomas Minder (62). Stocker is no stranger to the canton. From 2013 to 2020 he was a member of the Schaffhausen municipal council. But it is not a given that he will take the seat from the father of the rip-off initiative. Although Minder is not a party member, he joined the SVP faction.

The mandates are important

Now that the leader of the GLP faction won the seat of the Zurich Council of States, and the successes of the Center Party and the SP, the victory of the SVP elections in the National Council was put into perspective on Sunday. This is also because, now that Fabio Regazzi (61) has won his second seat in the Ticino Council of States with 44 mandates in the National Council and the Council of States, the center is clearly stronger than the FDP with 39 mandates. The center is leading the way in both municipalities. The fact that the liberals are minimally stronger than the centrist party in terms of the share of voters after the decimal point is of little use to them.

However, this will not affect the Federal Council elections on December 13, as the major parties will not vote out previous Federal Council members. But once Ignazio Cassis (62) or Karin Keller-Sutter (59) resign, the FDP’s second seat in the Federal Council will no longer be able to be retained. The current claim to dual representation in government can no longer be justified to voters as only the fourth largest faction.

Less civil,…

The Stöckli often functions as a correction for the National Council in everyday political life. The new balance of power is all the more important there: The Left, consisting of the Greens and the SP, forms the smallest of three blocs with twelve seats in the Council of States, and even if you add the one GLP seat, the Left is not power. But the right with the FDP and SVP is also not dominant in itself with 17 votes, even though MCG representative Mauro Poggia (64) joins them.

Between these two blocs, the center with 15 seats forms its own bloc that needs a majority. The center can therefore set the tone, as long as a significant portion of its members do not deviate from the party line. This has happened often in the current legislature.

…but more women

Depending on the political situation, the fact that the share of women in Stöckli has increased by more than 6 percentage points to 35 percent may also have an impact. The more feminine and less civil Council of States could lead to different majorities here and there.

Source:Blick