Chancellor of Switzerland

Federal Chancellor of Switzerland
Federal Chancellor of Switzerland
Bundeskanzler der Schweiz (German); Chancelier fédéral de la Suisse (French); Cancelliere federale della Svizzera (Italian); Chancelier federal da la Svizra (Romansh);
	Incumbent; Walter Thurnherr; since 1 January 2016
	Federal Chancellery of Switzerland
Residence	Federal Palace
Term length	Four years, renewable
Inaugural holder	Jean-Marc Mousson
Formation	1803
Website	www.bk.admin.ch

The Federal Chancellor is the head of the Federal Chancellery of Switzerland, the oldest Swiss federal institution, established at the initiative of Napoleon in 1803. The officeholder acts as the general staff of the seven-member Federal Council. The Chancellor is not a member of the government and the office is not at all comparable to that of the Chancellor of Germany or the Chancellor of Austria.[1]

The current Chancellor, Walter Thurnherr, a member of The Centre from Aargau, was elected on 9 December 2015. He began his term on 1 January 2016. Thurnherr was reelected on 11 December 2019.

Election

The Federal Chancellor is elected for a four-year term by both chambers of the Federal Assembly, assembled together, at the same time (and by the same process) as it elects the Federal Council.[2] The election is conducted by secret ballot using an exhaustive ballot in which each member of the Assembly can vote for any eligible person in the first two rounds, but only remaining candidates in subsequent rounds.[3] If no candidate receives an absolute majority, the candidate(s) with the fewest votes is eliminated.[3]

Vice-Chancellors

One or two Vice-Chancellors are also appointed. In contrast to the Chancellor, they are appointed directly by the Federal Council. Prior to 1852, the position was called the State Secretary of the Confederation. The two current Vice-Chancellors are André Simonazzi from Valais (Independent) since 2009 (also spokesman of the Federal Council) and Viktor Rossi from Bern (GLP/PVL) since 2019.

Role

The position is a political appointment and has only a technocratic role.

The Chancellor attends meetings of the Federal Council but does not have a vote. The Chancellor also prepares the Federal Council's reports to the Federal Assembly on its policy and activities. Still, the Chancellor's position is often referred to as that of an "eighth Federal Councillor". The chancellery is also responsible for the publication of all federal laws.[4]

List of Federal Chancellors

#	Tenure	Chancellor	Birth–death		Canton
1	1803–1830	Jean-Marc Mousson	1776–1861	Liberal	Vaud
2	1831–1847	Josef Franz Karl Amrhyn	1800–1849	Liberal	Lucerne
3	1848–1881	Johann Ulrich Schiess	1813–1883	Liberal	Appenzell Ausserrhoden
4	1882–1909	Gottlieb Ringier	1837–1929	Liberal	Aargau
5	1910–1918	Hans Schatzmann	1848–1923	Free Democratic Party	Aargau
6	1919–1925	Adolf von Steiger	1859–1925	Free Democratic Party	Bern
7	1925–1934	Robert Käslin	1871–1934	Free Democratic Party	Nidwalden
8	1934–1943	George Bovet	1874–1946	Free Democratic Party	Neuchâtel
9	1944–1951	Oskar Leimgruber	1886–1976	Christian Democratic People's Party	Fribourg
10	1951–1967	Charles Oser	1902–1994	Free Democratic Party	Basel-Stadt
11	1968–1981	Karl Huber	1915–2002	Christian Democratic People's Party	St. Gallen
12	1981–1991	Walter Buser	1926–2019	Social Democratic Party	Basel-Landschaft
13	1991–1999	François Couchepin	1935–2023	Free Democratic Party	Valais
14	2000–2007	Annemarie Huber-Hotz	1948–2019	Free Democratic Party	Zug
15	2008–2015	Corina Casanova	1956–	Christian Democratic People's Party	Grisons
16	2016–present	Walter Thurnherr	1963–	Christian Democratic People's Party	Aargau
16	2016–present	Walter Thurnherr	1963–	The Centre[Note 1]	Aargau

Sources

Chancellor of Switzerland in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.
Hans-Urs Willi. "The Chancellor: a few historical highlights on the development of their person and the office from ancient times to the Middle Ages and the Zenden Republic of Valais". In Klaus, Michel (editor): Quelle chance pour nos institutions? Mélanges offerts à Monsieur François Couchepin, chancelier de la Confédération à l'occasion de son 60e anniversaire / Festschrift für Bundeskanzler François Couchepin zum 60. Geburtstag. Schlieren 1995. Translated by Paul Suffrin and Elsbeth Hagan.

References

Siegenthaler, Peter (31 December 2019). "What does the Swiss chancellor actually do?". Swissinfo. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
"FAQ Élection du Conseil fédéral, Élection du Chancelier de la Confédération". L'Assemblée fédérale — Le Parlement suisse. Services du Parlement. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
"Loi du 13 décembre 2002 sur l'Assemblée fédérale (Loi sur le Parlement, LParl), Chaptire 2, Art. 132". FedLex. Chancellerie fédérale. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
"Federal Chancellor Walter Thurnherr", www.bk.admin.ch.

Notes

Walter Thurnherr was twice elected while a member of the Christian Democratic People's Party, and has been a continuous member of its successor, The Centre party, since it was formed following a merger with the Conservative Democratic Party, in January 2021.

External links

Official website
A Walk through the History of the Federal Chancellery, in German, French and Italian, on the web site of the Federal Chancellery
Federal Chancellor in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.

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[1] Siegenthaler, Peter (31 December 2019). "What does the Swiss chancellor actually do?". Swissinfo. Retrieved 9 January 2020.

[Parlement-2] "FAQ Élection du Conseil fédéral, Élection du Chancelier de la Confédération". L'Assemblée fédérale — Le Parlement suisse. Services du Parlement. Retrieved 27 September 2021.

[171.10-3] "Loi du 13 décembre 2002 sur l'Assemblée fédérale (Loi sur le Parlement, LParl), Chaptire 2, Art. 132". FedLex. Chancellerie fédérale. Retrieved 27 September 2021.

[4] "Federal Chancellor Walter Thurnherr", www.bk.admin.ch.

[5] Walter Thurnherr was twice elected while a member of the Christian Democratic People's Party, and has been a continuous member of its successor, The Centre party, since it was formed following a merger with the Conservative Democratic Party, in January 2021.