Swiss parliament shifts right amid immigration concerns

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) - The anti-immigration and conservative Swiss People's Party (SVP) gained nine seats in the National Council, or lower chamber of parliament, further strengthening its standing in the legislature amid immigration concerns, the final result showed on Monday.

The SVP won 28.6% of the vote, which would represent a gain of 3% compared to the 2019 polls, meaning it will have 62 seats at the 200-seat National Council.

Meanwhile, the Social Democratic (SP) party won 18% of the vote, a slight gain of 1.2%.

The centrist Die Mitte party grabbed 14.6% of the vote, a slight gain of 0.8%, while the liberal Free Democratic Party (FDP) was 14.4%, down 0.7%.

The big losers in the election are the Greens, which only secured 9.2%, a loss of 5 seats to 2019.

The Green Liberal Party (GLP) also fore poorly with 7.2%, down 0.6%.
In the 46-seat Council of States, or Senate, Mitte and FDP have won so far the most seats with 10 and 9, respectively.

However, a candidate has yet to achieve an absolute majority in some cantons, necessitating a second round of voting in November. In the second round, there is no requirement for an absolute majority.

According to the final results, the voter turnout is slightly higher at 46.6% compared to 45.1% in 2019.

Whether the elections will have an impact on political decisions in the coming years remains to be seen.

Switzerland has been governed according to a "magic formula" since 1959. The three biggest parties receive two seats in the seven-member federal government and the fourth-largest party receives one seat.

The "magic formula" is intended to ensure proportional representation of all citizens and expresses a "concordance government," which in turn is part of concordance democracy in Switzerland.

Following Sunday's elections, another election will be held to select all seven members of the Federal Council on Dec. 13 for the 2024–2028 term.