Second ballots for the Council of States take place in five cantons
Published: Sunday, Nov 19th 2023, 04:50
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In the cantons of Aargau, Schaffhausen, Solothurn, Ticino and Zurich, second rounds of voting for the Council of States will take place this Sunday. A close race is expected in the canton of Zurich, among others.
In the canton of Zurich, the conservative camp could lose its seat in the Council of States: After SP Councillor of States Daniel Jositsch was re-elected in the first round of voting, GLP National Councillor Tiana Angelina Moser and SVP National Councillor Gregor Rutz now remain in the race in the second round.
A close race is expected. The result will also depend on how the conservative and centre-left camps can mobilize their supporters on Sunday.
SP could win seat in Schaffhausen
The situation in the canton of Schaffhausen is similar to that in Zurich, where the non-party member of the Council of States Thomas Minder is running in the second round with the support of the SVP and FDP. In the FDP, the withdrawal of the party's own candidate after the first ballot and the support for Minder's candidacy led to internal disputes.
Minder is opposed by former Schaffhausen city councillor Simon Stocker (SP), who can count on the support of the Greens and GLP. Stocker achieved a better result than Minder in the first round of voting. Hannes Germann (SVP) was re-elected in the first round of voting.
Civic duel for Aargau seat
In the canton of Aargau, voters will decide a two-way battle for the vacant seat in the Council of States: the outcome of the race between centrist National Councillor Marianne Binder-Keller and SVP National Councillor Benjamin Giezendanner is still open.
In the first round of voting, Giezendanner came first among those not elected. Binder-Keller finished behind SP National Councillor Gabriela Suter. However, the cards were reshuffled for the run-off: the SP, Greens, GLP and EPP withdrew their candidates.
These parties are backing Binder-Keller. They want to prevent Aargau from continuing to be represented by two men in the Council of States. In the first round of voting, FDP member of the Council of States and party president Thierry Burkart was clearly confirmed. The FDP is supporting Giezendanner in the second ballot.
SVP and SP want Solothurn seat
In the canton of Solothurn, the SVP wants to win a seat in the Council of States for the first time - with National Councillor Christian Imark. For the SP, National Councillor Franziska Roth is set to defend her current seat. The FDP withdrew its unsuccessful candidate. Councillor of States Pirmin Bischof (center) was confirmed in the first round of voting.
The FDP supports Imark. A cross-party committee made up of the SP, GLP and Greens is campaigning for Roth, who received slightly more votes than Imark in the first round of voting.
Both candidates are shrewd political figures who, in addition to their National Council mandate, also have many years of experience in cantonal politics as well as in party and association work. The outcome of the election will probably depend in part on how the centrist and FDP voters decide.
Ticino in a neck-and-neck race
In the canton of Ticino, both seats in the Council of States are still up for grabs. After a good result in the first round of voting, Marco Chiesa (SVP), the incumbent member of the Council of States for Ticino, appears to be a shoo-in for the small chamber. Fabio Regazzi (center) and Alex Farinelli (FDP) are likely to go head-to-head in the battle for the second seat. The left is hoping for a surprise victory for the Greens' Greta Gysin.
The SP lost its seat in the Council of States. The left-wing party held Ticino's second seat in the Stöckli until last April. However, this seat has been vacant since the election of former Councillor of States Marina Carobbio to the Ticino government.
National Councillor Bruno Storni, who should have defended Carobbio's seat, withdrew after a poor result in the first round of voting in favor of the Green Party's Greta Gysin. It is unlikely that Gysin, who has been a member of the National Council since 2019, will be able to outperform the two conservative candidates and retain the left-wing seat.
©Keystone/SDA
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