“You’ll Have to Work With Me”

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The people have spoken: Pierre Maudet (45), the man who was found guilty of corruption in 2021 after an invitation to Abu Dhabi, has been officially rehabilitated. Geneva’s former and future Council of State spoke to Blick about his election.

Are you surprised to be re-elected to the cantonal government?

Pierre Maudet: I was more surprised by the election of ten of our Liberté et Justice social candidates to the cantonal parliament on April 2. From that moment on, my election to the Council of State was quite logical.

How do you explain that the people of Geneva give you a second chance?

We have given everything and have had a very good campaign in recent months with the candidates of Liberté et Justice Sociale. We have tried to accurately identify people’s concerns and provide answers. And there weren’t many candidates from other parties who did. We were able to convince because we are different.

Did you win this victory because people love you or because they hate the current government?

(laughs) I can’t look that deep into the souls of the people of Geneva. But the increase from about 30,000 votes on the first ballot to 45,000 on the second ballot shows more than just a rejection of the current government. A government that did not do badly, but perhaps lacked a bit of vision for the future.

The FDP wanted to prevent your return at all costs. Can you still work with your former party members?

You will definitely have to work with me. My election and the election of our ten cantonal councilors are the best proof that a blockade policy is doomed to fail.

Has the civil alliance of FDP, SVP, Mitte and MCG strengthened or weakened you?

It is true that in recent months I have seen a new category of politicians: “lock keepers” who want to build dams – whether against the right, against the left or against me. To answer your question accurately, one would have to examine the ballots. But instinctively I would say that Allianz has certainly pushed me to run a very high-profile and independent campaign. That put me in a position that I really appreciate.

Between three leftists and three rightists, are you now the arbitrator in the government?

With my liberal roots I am indeed in between these two poles. So I will probably end up in the referee role, yes.

But will this government lean more to the right or to the left?

Unless this question is interesting, which I don’t think it is, we’ll have to wait a little longer to answer it. It will depend on the priorities set by the new State Council in the coming weeks. Personally, I do not want a right-left government, but a government that mainly promotes the dossiers.

Some officials in Geneva fear that your authoritarian style of leadership will return with you in government. Can you calm her down?

One only has to read the Geneva news of the past few weeks to realize that the management problems attributed to me can also be found in other departments. Incidentally, I can reassure the officials: I, like everyone else, can get better. I admitted during the election campaign that the “bulldozer” approach I used at times also affected me. Even if I remain firm, I will not repeat the mistakes of the past. I have seen very well where their limits lie.

Now it’s time to divide the divisions. Which one would you rather have?

(laughs) Tomorrow will take care of itself, as the Bible says. No comment.

If you could only achieve one goal in five years, what would it be?

What we emphasized most during the election campaign: a public health insurance company. That would be transparent in contrast to the current opacity of health insurers. And it can help keep costs under control.

Source:Blick