Highlight of his career at the end: Eric Nussbaumer becomes the highest Swiss

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Can he climb even higher? After all, Eric Nussbaumer (63) was captain of FC Nationalrat for many years. But yes, on Monday he will be elected ‘highest Swiss’.

The Basel resident easily managed to get re-elected as a member of the National Council in October. With almost 34,000 votes he achieved the best result in the canton. This paves the way to the office of Chairman of the National Council. “The nice thing about it is the many external contacts, the exchange with other parliaments and governments – an experience that you do not have in normal political life,” says Eric Nussbaumer happily.

Nussbaumer has long known how to lead a session. In the year before his election as a member of the Federal Parliament, he was district administrator of Basel. “It is important to appreciate Parliament with all its different characters,” said Nussbaumer. “You don’t have to think that you are giving a reprimand here, that will not be well received. Rather, it is the role of a moderator.”

EU and renewable energies

It will be Nussbaumer’s last term in office. He does not yet know whether the office of Chairman of the National Council also means a diploma for him. But it is certainly a very important point in his political career, says the SP politician, who, even at the age of over sixty, still has something mischievous about him.

The fact that Switzerland is making progress in rapprochement with the EU and in the field of sustainable energy – these two topics are always high on Nussbaumer’s agenda. The first has earned it the reputation of a Euro-turbo.

The latter guided his professional career. He worked as a manager and advisor at various companies in the energy sector. An important milestone in recent years for Nussbaumer was winning the 2017 referendum on the energy law, which enshrined the promotion of renewable energy sources and the phase-out of nuclear energy.

After the failed framework agreement with the EU, it is extra important for the foreign politician that Switzerland does not lag behind. This year, Nussbaumer made a proposal to ensure that the Federal Council would in the future provide information on the possibilities for participation in EU cooperation programs such as Horizon Europe.

Nussbaumer started his political career in 1992 in the municipal committee of his former home, Frenkendorf BL. From 1998 he was a member of the Basel cantonal parliament and in 2007 he was elected member of the National Council. In 2013 he wanted to switch to the executive power of Baselbiet, but lost to his SVP opponent.

“He is a political fox – he knows politics,” says council colleague Elisabeth Schneider-Schneiter (59, center) from Basel about Nussbaumer. “He is an SP politician who builds bridges and is therefore appreciated far into the bourgeois camp.”

Nussbaumer lives in Liestal and has three adult children and seven grandchildren. His daughter Melanie Nussbaumer (37) is a politician for the SP in the neighboring canton, in the Grand Council of Basel-Stadt. “If you look at his career, this is a very nice next step. He is a very down-to-earth and connecting person, which is certainly valuable for this position. (SDA/pt)

Source:Blick