[Culturechat] Radicals in CH

[Vance Roy]

Radicals in CH? Sounds funny for a people who are thought by most to be 
conservative. When the modern day Swiss government was formed in 1848, 
it was patterned after the USA Constitution. The dominant force 
monopolizing things here for the first forty years was the Radical 
Party.

In 1890, the coalition form of the present day was formed. The Radicals 
offered a seat in the Federal Council to what is now the Catholic 
Democratic Union Party. This wasn't an altruistic move because the CDU 
had told the Radicals that they would use the new People's Initiative 
(more about that later) to force the issue. The Radicals lost further 
ground in 1919 when proportional representation in the parliament 
caused a drop in their numbers. Over the years that followed, the 
Social Democrats and the Swiss People's Party gained seats. This was 
the beginning of today's "Magic Formula". During and after WW II, the 
Socialists became known as the country's defenders and were given a 
seat on the council.

In 1953, the Socialist Party lost their seat briefly, but by 1959, the 
present day composition of two Radicals, two Socialists, two Catholics, 
and one Swiss People's Party held seats on the seven member Federal 
Council. This is the executive branch of the government with one member 
rotating as President each year. This "magic formula" persists today, 
but it may be threatened soon since the Swiss People's Party has won 
more and more votes in federal elections. Since the formula is a 
consensus and not written as law, this could change as soon as next 
year. Also by consensus, three of the seven seats are reserved for 
French and Italian speakers. The Swiss People's Party (SVP) is by far 
the most conservative of all. The Radicals are not "radical" at all but 
middle of the road.


Vance Roy
gigli.saw@dplanet.ch
http://homepage.mac.com/fredch