Green Liberal Party of Switzerland
Encyclopedia
The Green Liberal Party of Switzerland , abbreviated to glp, is a centrist
Green liberal
political party
in Switzerland
. Founded in 2007, the party holds five seats in the Federal Assembly.
The party was formed on 19 July 2007 by four cantonal
branches of the Green Party
. Contesting the election in October 2007
in St. Gallen
and Zurich
, the party won three seats in the National Council
. A month later, the party won a seat in the Council of States, with Verena Diener
representing Zurich. The party has since expanded across Switzerland, and holds seats in thirteen cantonal legislatures in German-speaking Switzerland and the Romandy. The party has polled above 5% in anticipation of the 2011 federal election
.
The Green Liberals are a party of the political centre or centre-right
, as opposed to the left-wing Green Party. They seek to combine liberalism on civil liberties and moderate economic liberalism
with environmental sustainability
. In the Federal Assembly of Switzerland, the glp is part of the centrist Christian Democrats/EPP/glp Group
, along with the Christian Democratic People's Party
and Evangelical People's Party
.
parties of the same name that had seceded from the Green Party. These branches were in Basel-Landschaft, Bern, St. Gallen
, and Zurich
.
In the 2007 election
to the National Council
on 22 October 2007, the party ran in Zurich and St. Gall. Despite being limited to only two cantons, the party won 1.4% of the popular vote nationwide and 3 out of 200 seats. In Zurich, they won 7% of the vote. One of these three had been a National Councillor for the Green Party in the previous Parliament.
A month later, it won a seat in the Council of States
, with Verena Diener
representing Zurich. Along with the first appearance of the Green Party, this was the first time a minor party had won representation in the Council of States since 1995. When the Federal Assembly convened, the glp joined the Christian Democrats/EPP/glp Group
, making it the second-largest group, behind the Swiss People's Party
. In 2010 the party got an addition seat with Markus Stadler.
There are now fourteen cantonal parties: Zurich, St. Gall, Basel-Country, Bern, Zug
, Thurgau
, Basel-Stadt, Graubünden
, Lucerne
, Aargau
, Solothurn
, Fribourg
, Vaud
and Geneva
.
Centrism
In politics, centrism is the ideal or the practice of promoting policies that lie different from the standard political left and political right. Most commonly, this is visualized as part of the one-dimensional political spectrum of left-right politics, with centrism landing in the middle between...
Green liberal
Green liberalism
Green liberalism is a term used to refer to liberals who have incorporated green concerns into their ideology.- Philosophy :Green liberalism values the Earth very highly, and this philosophy highly values the planet being passed down to the next generation unharmed...
political party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. Founded in 2007, the party holds five seats in the Federal Assembly.
The party was formed on 19 July 2007 by four cantonal
Cantons of Switzerland
The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the member states of the federal state of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereign state with its own borders, army and currency from the Treaty of Westphalia until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848...
branches of the Green Party
Green Party of Switzerland
The Green Party of Switzerland is the fifth-largest party in the National Council of Switzerland, and the largest party that is not represented on the Federal Council.-History:...
. Contesting the election in October 2007
Swiss federal election, 2007
Elections to the Swiss Federal Assembly, the federal parliament of Switzerland, were held on Sunday, 21 October 2007. In a few cantons, a second round of the elections to the Council of States was held on 11 November, 18 November, and 25 November 2007...
in St. Gallen
Canton of St. Gallen
The Canton of St. Gallen is a canton of Switzerland. St. Gallen is located in the north east of Switzerland. It covers an area of 2,026 km², and has a population of . , the population included 97,461 foreigners, or about 20.9% of the total population. The capital is St. Gallen. Spelling...
and Zurich
Canton of Zürich
The Canton of Zurich has a population of . The canton is located in the northeast of Switzerland and the city of Zurich is its capital. The official language is German, but people speak the local Swiss German dialect called Züritüütsch...
, the party won three seats in the National Council
National Council of Switzerland
The National Council of Switzerland is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Switzerland. With 200 seats, it is the larger of the two houses....
. A month later, the party won a seat in the Council of States, with Verena Diener
Verena Diener
Verena Diener is a Swiss politician, member of the Green Liberal Party of Switzerland, representing the canton of Zürich in the Swiss Council of States....
representing Zurich. The party has since expanded across Switzerland, and holds seats in thirteen cantonal legislatures in German-speaking Switzerland and the Romandy. The party has polled above 5% in anticipation of the 2011 federal election
Swiss federal election, 2011
Federal elections were held in Switzerland on 23 October 2011.All of the Federal Assembly were to be elected: all 200 seats in the National Council and all 46 seats in the Council of States....
.
The Green Liberals are a party of the political centre or centre-right
Centre-right
The centre-right or center-right is a political term commonly used to describe or denote individuals, political parties, or organizations whose views stretch from the centre to the right on the left-right spectrum, excluding far right stances. Centre-right can also describe a coalition of centrist...
, as opposed to the left-wing Green Party. They seek to combine liberalism on civil liberties and moderate economic liberalism
Economic liberalism
Economic liberalism is the ideological belief in giving all people economic freedom, and as such granting people with more basis to control their own lives and make their own mistakes. It is an economic philosophy that supports and promotes individual liberty and choice in economic matters and...
with environmental sustainability
Sustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
. In the Federal Assembly of Switzerland, the glp is part of the centrist Christian Democrats/EPP/glp Group
Christian Democrats/EPP/glp Group
The Christian Democrats/EVP/glp Group , abbreviated to CEg, is a centrist parliamentary group of three parties in Switzerland's federal legislature, the Federal Assembly. It is formed by the Christian Democratic People's Party , Evangelical People's Party , and Green Liberal Party...
, along with the Christian Democratic People's Party
Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland
The Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland is a Christian democratic political party in Switzerland. It is the fourth-largest party in the National Council, with 31 seats, and the largest in the Council of States, with 15 seats. It has one seat, that of Doris Leuthard, on the Swiss...
and Evangelical People's Party
Evangelical People's Party of Switzerland
The Evangelical People's Party of Switzerland is a political party in Switzerland.In questions of redistribution, education, environmentalism, immigration policy, the EVP stands rather center-left. In questions of euthanasia, abortion, and registered partnership and other typically Christian...
.
History
The party was founded on 19 July 2007 by four cantonalCantons of Switzerland
The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the member states of the federal state of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereign state with its own borders, army and currency from the Treaty of Westphalia until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848...
parties of the same name that had seceded from the Green Party. These branches were in Basel-Landschaft, Bern, St. Gallen
Canton of St. Gallen
The Canton of St. Gallen is a canton of Switzerland. St. Gallen is located in the north east of Switzerland. It covers an area of 2,026 km², and has a population of . , the population included 97,461 foreigners, or about 20.9% of the total population. The capital is St. Gallen. Spelling...
, and Zurich
Canton of Zürich
The Canton of Zurich has a population of . The canton is located in the northeast of Switzerland and the city of Zurich is its capital. The official language is German, but people speak the local Swiss German dialect called Züritüütsch...
.
In the 2007 election
Swiss federal election, 2007
Elections to the Swiss Federal Assembly, the federal parliament of Switzerland, were held on Sunday, 21 October 2007. In a few cantons, a second round of the elections to the Council of States was held on 11 November, 18 November, and 25 November 2007...
to the National Council
National Council of Switzerland
The National Council of Switzerland is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Switzerland. With 200 seats, it is the larger of the two houses....
on 22 October 2007, the party ran in Zurich and St. Gall. Despite being limited to only two cantons, the party won 1.4% of the popular vote nationwide and 3 out of 200 seats. In Zurich, they won 7% of the vote. One of these three had been a National Councillor for the Green Party in the previous Parliament.
A month later, it won a seat in the Council of States
Swiss Council of States
The Council of States of Switzerland is the smaller chamber of the Federal Assembly of Switzerland, and is considered the Assembly's upper house. There are 46 Councillors....
, with Verena Diener
Verena Diener
Verena Diener is a Swiss politician, member of the Green Liberal Party of Switzerland, representing the canton of Zürich in the Swiss Council of States....
representing Zurich. Along with the first appearance of the Green Party, this was the first time a minor party had won representation in the Council of States since 1995. When the Federal Assembly convened, the glp joined the Christian Democrats/EPP/glp Group
Christian Democrats/EPP/glp Group
The Christian Democrats/EVP/glp Group , abbreviated to CEg, is a centrist parliamentary group of three parties in Switzerland's federal legislature, the Federal Assembly. It is formed by the Christian Democratic People's Party , Evangelical People's Party , and Green Liberal Party...
, making it the second-largest group, behind the Swiss People's Party
Swiss People's Party
The Swiss People's Party , also known as the Democratic Union of the Centre , is a conservative political party in Switzerland. Chaired by Toni Brunner, but spearheaded by Christoph Blocher, the party is the largest party in the Federal Assembly, with 58 members of the National Council and 6 of...
. In 2010 the party got an addition seat with Markus Stadler.
There are now fourteen cantonal parties: Zurich, St. Gall, Basel-Country, Bern, Zug
Canton of Zug
The Canton of Zug is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland. It is located in central Switzerland and its capital is Zug. With 239 km² the canton is one of the smallest of the cantons in terms of area. It is not subdivided into districts.- History :The earlier history of the canton is...
, Thurgau
Thurgau
Thurgau is a northeast canton of Switzerland. The population, , is . In 2007, there were a total of 47,390 who were resident foreigners. The capital is Frauenfeld.-History:...
, Basel-Stadt, Graubünden
Graubünden
Graubünden or Grisons is the largest and easternmost canton of Switzerland. The canton shares borders with the cantons of Ticino, Uri, Glarus and St. Gallen and international borders with Italy, Austria and Liechtenstein...
, Lucerne
Canton of Lucerne
Lucerne is a canton of Switzerland. It is located in the centre of Switzerland. The population of the canton is . , the population included 57,268 foreigners, or about 15.8% of the total population. The cantonal capital is Lucerne.-History:...
, Aargau
Aargau
Aargau is one of the more northerly cantons of Switzerland. It comprises the lower course of the river Aare, which is why the canton is called Aar-gau .-History:...
, Solothurn
Canton of Solothurn
Solothurn is a canton of Switzerland. It is located in the northwest of Switzerland. The capital is Solothurn.-History:The territory of the canton comprises land acquired by the capital...
, Fribourg
Canton of Fribourg
The Canton of Fribourg is a canton of Switzerland. It is located in the west of the country. The capital of the canton is Fribourg. The name Fribourg is French, whereas is the German name for both the canton and the town.-History:...
, Vaud
Vaud
Vaud is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland and is located in Romandy, the French-speaking southwestern part of the country. The capital is Lausanne. The name of the Canton in Switzerland's other languages are Vaud in Italian , Waadt in German , and Vad in Romansh.-History:Along the lakes,...
and Geneva
Canton of Geneva
The Republic and Canton of Geneva is the French speaking westernmost canton or state of Switzerland, surrounded on almost all sides by France. As is the case in several other Swiss cantons The Republic and Canton of Geneva is the French speaking westernmost canton or state of Switzerland,...
.