The “Eighth Federal Council” will vacate its seat at the end of the year.
Published: Wednesday, Aug 16th 2023, 13:40
Updated At: Friday, Oct 13th 2023, 14:12
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Walter Thurnherr, the unofficial eighth member of the Swiss Federal Council, announced his resignation on Wednesday. He has served as Federal Chancellor since 2016 and is responsible for coordinating and making suggestions to the Council. Thurnherr has had a long career with the Swiss government, beginning in 1989 when he joined the diplomatic service. He has worked in Bern, Moscow, and New York, and has served as the personal assistant to former Foreign Minister Flavio Cotti and as the General Secretary in three departments. In 2015, Thurnherr was elected Federal Chancellor by the United Federal Assembly, and he has since been responsible for the coordination of the Council's activities. He has also been involved in the digitalization project E-Voting, which seeks to allow Swiss citizens abroad to vote electronically. After security concerns caused the project to be put on hold in 2019, new trials began in June 2021 in three cantons, allowing 65,000 eligible voters to use the virtual ballot box. On Wednesday, the Federal Council also approved the use of electronic voting for the Swiss federal elections in October.nnnnnnnnnn
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