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Swiss Watching trivia, No 20: Parliament
Switzerland may be 719 years old but its parliament only dates back to the Federal Constitution of 1848; the building itself (in Bern) wasn’t completed until 1902. The Federal Assembly, as the Swiss...
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Tears of outgoing Bundesrat minister Merz
Click image to see Merz on TV With only two days to go before his successor is elected by the Swiss parliament, outgoing Finance Minister Hans-Rudolf Merz was today reduced to tears. Of joy. He was...
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A week in Swiss politics
Earthquakes don’t happen very often in Swiss politics, which has a reputation for being rather boring – in Switzerland as much as in the outside world. Consensus-building and permanent coalitions...
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Landsgemeinde: direct democracy in action
Next Sunday, 1 May, anyone in Switzerland can witness a very Swiss institution. Actually, this year you have two chances on the same day, thanks to Easter being so late. All you have to do is head to...
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Quick guide to the Swiss elections
On Sunday Switzerland votes for a new parliament. But Swiss elections aren’t like most others. It’s not a case of sitting up until 4am watching the results, waiting for a party to pass the finish line....
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Lessons I’ve learned from a Swiss election
It’s decision day for the Swiss but only because today is the day when the votes are counted. Most people have voted already, either by post or yesterday in person. Today the polls close at noon,...
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