List of political parties in Switzerland

This is a list of political parties in Switzerland.

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....

has a multi-party system

Multi-party system

A multi-party system is a system in which multiple political parties have the capacity to gain control of government separately or in coalition, e.g.The Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition in the United Kingdom formed in 2010. The effective number of parties in a multi-party system is normally...

. Since 1959, the four largest parties

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...

have formed a coalition government

Coalition government

A coalition government is a cabinet of a parliamentary government in which several political parties cooperate. The usual reason given for this arrangement is that no party on its own can achieve a majority in the parliament...

, according to a "Zauberformel" or "magic formula". This arithmetic formula divides the seven cabinet seats among representatives of the four largest parties.

Federal and cantonal parliaments

The following parties are represented either in the Swiss Federal Assembly or in cantonal parliaments:

Party					Members in					Political Position
Abbr. Abbreviation An abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase. Usually, but not always, it consists of a letter or group of letters taken from the word or phrase...	Name		W	Leader	FC Swiss Federal Council The Federal Council is the seven-member executive council which constitutes the federal government of Switzerland and serves as the Swiss collective head of state....	CS 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....	NC 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....	Cantons	Members	(Ideology)
SVP/UDC		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...	http://www.svp.ch	Toni Brunner Toni Brunner Toni Brunner is a Swiss farmer, national chairman of the Swiss People's Party and a member of the Swiss National Council.-Biography:...	1	6	58	563	90,000	Right-wing populism Right-wing populism Right-wing populism is a political ideology that rejects existing political consensus and combines laissez-faire liberalism and anti-elitism. It is considered "right-wing" because of its rejection of social equality and government programs to achieve it, its opposition to social integration, and... , National conservatism National conservatism National conservatism is a political term used primarily in Europe to describe a variant of conservatism which concentrates more on national interests than standard conservatism as well as upholding cultural and ethnic identity, while not being outspokenly nationalist or supporting a far-right...
SPS/PSS		Social Democratic Party Social Democratic Party of Switzerland The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....	http://www.sp-ps.ch	Christian Levrat	2	9	42	446	35,000	Centre-left Centre-left Centre-left is a political term that describes individuals, political parties or organisations such as think tanks whose ideology lies between the centre and the left on the left-right spectrum... , Social democracy Social democracy Social democracy is a political ideology of the center-left on the political spectrum. Social democracy is officially a form of evolutionary reformist socialism. It supports class collaboration as the course to achieve socialism...
FDP/PLR		FDP.The Liberals FDP.The Liberals FDP.The Liberals is a classical liberal political party in Switzerland. It is the joint-largest party in the Federal Council, third-largest party in the National Council, and second-largest in the Council of States....	http://www.fdp.ch	Fulvio Pelli Fulvio Pelli Fulvio Pelli is a Swiss politician, member of the Swiss National Council , and president of the Free Democratic Party.-External links:*...	2	12	34	553	130,000	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... , Classical liberalism Classical liberalism Classical liberalism is the philosophy committed to the ideal of limited government, constitutionalism, rule of law, due process, and liberty of individuals including freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and free markets....
CVP/PDC/PPD		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...	http://www.cvp.ch	Christophe Darbellay Christophe Darbellay Christophe Darbellay is a Swiss politician, member of the Swiss National Council, and President of the Christian Democratic People's Party .-External links:...	1	14	31	480	100,000	Centrism, Christian democracy Christian Democracy Christian democracy is a political ideology that seeks to apply Christian principles to public policy. It emerged in nineteenth-century Europe under the influence of conservatism and Catholic social teaching...
BDP/PBD		Conservative Democratic Party	http://www.bdp.info	Hans Grunder	1	1	5	75	6,500	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... , Conservative liberalism Conservative liberalism Conservative liberalism is a variant of liberalism, combining liberal values and policies with conservative stances, or, more simply, representing the right-wing of the liberal movement....

GPS/PES		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:...	http://www.gruene.ch	Ueli Leuenberger	0	2	20	195	6,500	Centre-left Centre-left Centre-left is a political term that describes individuals, political parties or organisations such as think tanks whose ideology lies between the centre and the left on the left-right spectrum... , Green politics Green politics Green politics is a political ideology that aims for the creation of an ecologically sustainable society rooted in environmentalism, social liberalism, and grassroots democracy...
GLP/PVL		Green Liberal Party Green Liberal Party of Switzerland 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....	http://www.grunliberale.ch/	Martin Bäumle	0	2	3	54	2,700	Centrism, Green liberalism 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...
EVP/PEV		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...	http://www.evppev.ch	Heiner Studer	0	0	2	45	4,800	Centrism, Christian democracy Christian Democracy Christian democracy is a political ideology that seeks to apply Christian principles to public policy. It emerged in nineteenth-century Europe under the influence of conservatism and Catholic social teaching...
CSP/PCS			http://www.pcs-csp.ch	Marius Achermann	0	0	1	24	1,500	Centre-left Centre-left Centre-left is a political term that describes individuals, political parties or organisations such as think tanks whose ideology lies between the centre and the left on the left-right spectrum... , Christian left Christian left The Christian left is a term originating in the United States, used to describe a spectrum of left-wing Christian political and social movements which largely embraces social justice....
Lega		Ticino League Ticino League The Ticino League is an isolationist, national conservative political party in Switzerland active in the canton of Ticino.In 1991, after some public campaigning in the Sunday journal Mattino della Domenica against political power and use of public money, the editor Giuliano Bignasca and the...	http://www.legaticinesi.ch	Giuliano Bignasca	0	0	1	21	1,500	Right-wing, Regionalism Regionalism (politics) Regionalism is a term used in international relations. Regionalism also constitutes one of the three constituents of the international commercial system... (TI Ticino Canton Ticino or Ticino is the southernmost canton of Switzerland. Named after the Ticino river, it is the only canton in which Italian is the sole official language... )
EDU/UDF		Federal Democratic Union Federal Democratic Union of Switzerland The Federal Democratic Union of Switzerland is a political party in Switzerland....	http://www.edu-udf.ch/	Hans Moser	0	0	1	16	3,000	Right-wing, Evangelicalism Evangelicalism Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
AL		Alternative Left Alternative Left The Alternative Left , or The Left in translation from French and Italian, is a political party of the far-left in Switzerland. This party seeks to unite the political forces and movements farther to the left on Switzerland's political spectrum than the center-left Social Democratic Party and the...	http://alternative-linke.ch/		0	0	1	6	2,000	Left-wing Left-wing politics In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society... , Democratic socialism Democratic socialism Democratic socialism is a description used by various socialist movements and organizations to emphasize the democratic character of their political orientation...
SLB/MSL		Social Liberal Movement Social Liberal Movement The Social Liberal Movement is a social conservative party in Switzerland. Founded in 2011, the SLB has one member of the National Council.The party was founded by Samuel Schmid on 23 April 2011...	http://www.slb-schweiz.ch/	Samuel Schmid	0	0	1	1		Social conservatism Social conservatism Social Conservatism is primarily a political, and usually morally influenced, ideology that focuses on the preservation of what are seen as traditional values. Social conservatism is a form of authoritarianism often associated with the position that the federal government should have a greater role...
MCG		Geneva Citizens' Movement	http://www.mcge.ch	Éric Stauffer	0	0	0	17		Right-wing, Regionalism Regionalism (politics) Regionalism is a term used in international relations. Regionalism also constitutes one of the three constituents of the international commercial system... (GE 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,... )
PdA/PST		Swiss Party of Labour	http://www.pdl.ch	Norberto Crivelli	0	0	0	14		Left-wing Left-wing politics In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society... , Communism Communism Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
Sol		solidaritéS			0	0	0	5		Democratic socialism Democratic socialism Democratic socialism is a description used by various socialist movements and organizations to emphasize the democratic character of their political orientation...
SD/DS		Swiss Democrats Swiss Democrats The Swiss Democrats are a right-wing political party in Switzerland.The party is not represented in the Federal Assembly, but has two members of the Grand Council of Aargau....	http://www.schweizer-demokraten.ch	Bernhard Hess	0	0	0	2		Right-wing, National conservatism National conservatism National conservatism is a political term used primarily in Europe to describe a variant of conservatism which concentrates more on national interests than standard conservatism as well as upholding cultural and ethnic identity, while not being outspokenly nationalist or supporting a far-right...
Total					7	46	200	2559

Notes: ¹ Federal Council since 2004; ² Council of States, 2007; ³ National Council 2007; (members of party or caucus

Caucus

A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a political party or movement, especially in the United States and Canada. As the use of the term has been expanded the exact definition has come to vary among political cultures.-Origin of the term:...

)

Minor groups

The following groups or parties are not represented at either the cantonal or national level (but may hold positions in municipal parliaments).

Abbr. Abbreviation An abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase. Usually, but not always, it consists of a letter or group of letters taken from the word or phrase...		W	Leader	Ideology	Founded	Popular vote
FPS/PSL	Freedom Party Freedom Party of Switzerland The Freedom Party of Switzerland is a minor populist right-wing political party in Switzerland. Its president and leading representative is Jürg Scherrer, formerly the head of the security department in the city government of Biel/Bienne until 2008.- History :The FPS was founded 1984 in Zürich by...	http://www.freiheits-partei.ch	Peter Commarmot	Right-wing, National liberalism National liberalism National liberalism is a variant of liberalism, combining nationalism with some liberal policies, especially regarding economic liberalism. The roots of it are to be found in the 19th century, when conservative liberalism was the ideology of the political classes in most European countries, then...	1984	n/a
HPS/PHS	Swiss Humanist Party	http://www.humanistische-partei.ch/	Daniel Horowitz	Humanist Movement Humanist Movement The Humanist Movement is an international volunteer organisation that promotes nonviolence and non-discrimination. It is not an institution...	1984	n/a
KVP	Catholic People's Party	http://www.kvps.ch/	Lukas Brühwiler-Frésey	Catholic social teaching Catholic social teaching Catholic social teaching is a body of doctrine developed by the Catholic Church on matters of poverty and wealth, economics, social organization and the role of the state...	1994	n/a
PNOS	Swiss Nationalist Party	http://www.pnos.ch/	Dominic Lüthard	Far-right, Ethnic nationalism Ethnic nationalism Ethnic nationalism is a form of nationalism wherein the "nation" is defined in terms of ethnicity. Whatever specific ethnicity is involved, ethnic nationalism always includes some element of descent from previous generations and the implied claim of ethnic essentialism, i.e...	2000	0.05%
PPS	Pirate Party	http://www.piraten-partei.ch	Denis Simonet Denis Simonet Denis Simonet aka "SciFi" from Ipsach is a Swiss politician, and president of the Pirate Party Switzerland...	Freedom of Information Freedom of information Freedom of information refers to the protection of the right to freedom of expression with regards to the Internet and information technology . Freedom of information may also concern censorship in an information technology context, i.e... , Information privacy	2009	0.48%
TPS/PSpA	Tierpartei Schweiz	http://www.tierpartei.ch	Thomas Märki	Animal rights Animal rights Animal rights, also known as animal liberation, is the idea that the most basic interests of non-human animals should be afforded the same consideration as the similar interests of human beings...	2010	0.15%
	parteifrei.ch	http://www.parteifrei.ch/	Lukas Harder	Voluntary association of independent politicians formed for the 2011 elections 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.... ; opposing party politics Party Politics Party Politics is a peer-reviewed academic journal that publishes papers in the field of Political Science. The journal's editors are David M Farrell and Paul Webb...	2011	0.19%
	MontagnaViva	http://montagnaviva.info/	Germano Mattei	Regionalism Regionalism (politics) Regionalism is a term used in international relations. Regionalism also constitutes one of the three constituents of the international commercial system... (Alpine Ticino Ticino Canton Ticino or Ticino is the southernmost canton of Switzerland. Named after the Ticino river, it is the only canton in which Italian is the sole official language... )	2011	0.08%
	Alpenparlament	http://www.alpenparlament.com/		Alternative medicine Alternative medicine Alternative medicine is any healing practice, "that does not fall within the realm of conventional medicine." It is based on historical or cultural traditions, rather than on scientific evidence....	2011	0.06%
	Konfessionslose.ch	http://www.konfessionslose.ch/		Separation of church and state Separation of church and state The concept of the separation of church and state refers to the distance in the relationship between organized religion and the nation state....	2011	0.05%
	Volksaktion Eric Weber Eric Weber is a populist publisher and far-right politician of Basel, Switzerland.He was a member of the far-right Nationale Aktion and member of the Basel city council from 1984 to 1992....	http://www.ericweber.homepage.t-online.de/		right-wing populism Right-wing populism Right-wing populism is a political ideology that rejects existing political consensus and combines laissez-faire liberalism and anti-elitism. It is considered "right-wing" because of its rejection of social equality and government programs to achieve it, its opposition to social integration, and... (Basel-Stadt)	2002	0.03%
	La gauche combative	http://www.lescommunistes.org/		Communism Communism Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production... (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,... )	2002	0.03%
	Les Rauraques	http://amcpacer.free.fr/rauraque/index.html		Separatism Jurassic separatism Jurassic separatism is a regionalist independence movement in the Bernese Jura.The "Jurassic question" is the question of secession of the Jura region from Berne, implemented partially as three of seven districts formed the Canton of Jura in 1979, while the remaining four opted to remain with... (Bernese Jura Bernese Jura Bernese Jura is the name for the French-speaking area of the Swiss canton of Bern, and from 2010 one of five administrative divisions of the canton.... )	2011	0.03%

Historical parties

Name	Ideology	Active	Continued as
Communist Party of Switzerland Communist Party of Switzerland Communist Party of Switzerland , known as the "Old Communists" , was a historical Communist party, section of the Communist International....	Communism Communism Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...	1921–1940	Partei der Arbeit
Communist Party of Switzerland/Marxist–Leninists	Communism Communism Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...	1969–1987	Libertarian Socialist Party
Communist Party Opposition Communist Party Opposition (Switzerland) Communist Party Opposition was a Swiss communist party 1930-1935, connected to the German Communist Party Opposition. It was the Swiss affiliate to the International Communist Opposition....	Communism Communism Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...	1930–1925	Social Democratic Party of Switzerland Social Democratic Party of Switzerland The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
Democratic Party Democratic Party (Switzerland) The Democratic Party was a political party which existed in several Swiss cantons from 1860 to 1971.Following the total revision of the Swiss Federal Constitution in 1874, the democratic movement had achieved its goals at the federal level and was accordingly dissolved...	Direct democracy Direct democracy Direct democracy is a form of government in which people vote on policy initiatives directly, as opposed to a representative democracy in which people vote for representatives who then vote on policy initiatives. Direct democracy is classically termed "pure democracy"...	1860–1971	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...
Party of Farmers, Traders and Independents Party of Farmers, Traders and Independents The Party of Farmers, Traders and Independents was a Swiss political party founded in 1936. It grew out of a merger between various farmers’ parties at canton level which had been established during the First World War .In November 1917, Rudolf Minger set up the Bern Party of Farmers and... (BGB)	Centrism 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... , Agrarianism Agrarianism Agrarianism has two common meanings. The first meaning refers to a social philosophy or political philosophy which values rural society as superior to urban society, the independent farmer as superior to the paid worker, and sees farming as a way of life that can shape the ideal social values...	1936–1971	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...
Eidgenössische Sammlung Eidgenössische Sammlung Eidgenössiche Sammlung was a Swiss political party, founded in 1940 by Robert Tobler as a successor to the recently outlawed National Front.The party demanded an adjustment in Swiss policy to favour the Axis powers. This was particularly important as, after June 1940 the country was surrounded by...	Fascism Fascism Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood... /nationalism Nationalism Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...	1940–1943
Free Democratic Party of Switzerland Free Democratic Party of Switzerland The Free Democratic Party was a classical liberal political party in Switzerland. It was one of the major parties in Switzerland until its merger with the smaller classical liberal Liberal Party, to form FDP.The Liberals on 1 January 2009.... (FDP/PRD/PLR)	Classical liberalism Classical liberalism Classical liberalism is the philosophy committed to the ideal of limited government, constitutionalism, rule of law, due process, and liberty of individuals including freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and free markets.... , Radicalism Liberalism and radicalism in Switzerland This article gives an overview of liberalism and radicalism in Switzerland. It is limited to liberal and radical parties with substantial support, mainly proved by having had a representation in parliament. The sign ⇒ means a reference to another party in that scheme...	1894–2009	FDP.The Liberals FDP.The Liberals FDP.The Liberals is a classical liberal political party in Switzerland. It is the joint-largest party in the Federal Council, third-largest party in the National Council, and second-largest in the Council of States....
Liberal Party of Switzerland Liberal Party of Switzerland The Liberal Party of Switzerland was a party with economically liberal policies. It was known as a party of the upper class. On 1 January 2009 it merged with the larger Free Democratic Party to establish FDP.The Liberals.... (LPS/PLS)	Classical liberalism Classical liberalism Classical liberalism is the philosophy committed to the ideal of limited government, constitutionalism, rule of law, due process, and liberty of individuals including freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and free markets....	1913–2009	FDP.The Liberals FDP.The Liberals FDP.The Liberals is a classical liberal political party in Switzerland. It is the joint-largest party in the Federal Council, third-largest party in the National Council, and second-largest in the Council of States....
National Front National Front (Switzerland) The National Front was a far right political party in Switzerland that flourished during the 1930s.The party began life amongst a number of debating clubs at the University of Zurich, where anti-Semitism, Swiss nationalism and support for ideas similar to those later adopted in the racial policy of...	Fascism Fascism Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood... /nationalism Nationalism Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...	1930s	Eidgenössische Sammlung Eidgenössische Sammlung Eidgenössiche Sammlung was a Swiss political party, founded in 1940 by Robert Tobler as a successor to the recently outlawed National Front.The party demanded an adjustment in Swiss policy to favour the Axis powers. This was particularly important as, after June 1940 the country was surrounded by...
National Movement of Switzerland National Movement of Switzerland The National Movement of Switzerland was a Nazi umbrella group formed in Switzerland in 1940.The NBS had its roots in the 1938 foundation of the Bund Treuer Eidgenossen Nationalsozialistischer Weltanschauung by Rolf Henne after he was removed from the leadership of the National Front by the more... (NBS)	Nazism Nazism Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...	1940–1941
National Union National Union (Switzerland) The National Union was the main fascist political party in French-speaking Switzerland before World War II.The Union was formed in Geneva in 1932 by Georges Oltramare, a lawyer and writer. Noted for his anti-Semitic writing, Oltramare founded the Order Politique Nationale in 1931 but merged it...	Fascism Fascism Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood... /nationalism Nationalism Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...	1932–1940
Progressive Organizations of Switzerland Progressive Organizations of Switzerland The Progressive Organisations of Switzerland were a Communist party founded in 1969. Most of its members were from a university background.- History of the POCH :... (POCH)	Communism Communism Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...	1969–1993
Ring of Independents (LdU)	Centrism 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...	1936–1999
Volkspartei der Schweiz Volkspartei der Schweiz Volkspartei der Schweiz was a Swiss neo-Nazi political party founded in 1951 by Gaston-Armand Amaudruz and Erwin Vollenweider.The party was one of the driving forces behind the foundation of the New European Order and boasted Hans Oehler amongst its leading members. It published its own paper... (VPS)	Neo-Nazism Neo-Nazism Neo-Nazism consists of post-World War II social or political movements seeking to revive Nazism or some variant thereof.The term neo-Nazism can also refer to the ideology of these movements....	1950s

Names in the national languages

Abbr. Abbreviation An abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase. Usually, but not always, it consists of a letter or group of letters taken from the word or phrase...	Party	German name German language German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....	French French language French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...	Italian Italian language Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...	Romansh
CVP/PDC	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...	Christlichdemokratische Volkspartei der Schweiz or CVP	Parti Démocrate-Chrétien Suisse or PDC	Partito Popolare Democratico or PPD	Partida Cristian-democratica de la Svizra or PCD
FDP/PRD	Free Democratic Party Free Democratic Party of Switzerland The Free Democratic Party was a classical liberal political party in Switzerland. It was one of the major parties in Switzerland until its merger with the smaller classical liberal Liberal Party, to form FDP.The Liberals on 1 January 2009....	Freisinnig-Demokratische Partei der Schweiz or FDP	Parti radical-démocratique suisse or PRD	Partito Liberale Radicale or PLR	Partida liberaldemocrata de la Svizra or PLD
SPS/PSS	Social Democratic Party Social Democratic Party of Switzerland The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....	Sozialdemokratische Partei der Schweiz or SP	Parti Socialiste Suisse or PSS	Partito Socialista Svizzero or PSS	Partida Socialdemocratica de la Svizra or PSS
SVP/UDC	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...	Schweizerische Volkspartei or SVP	Union Démocratique du Centre or UDC	Unione Democratica di Centro or UDC	Partida Populara Svizra or PPS

CSP/PCS	Christian Social Party Christian Social Party (Switzerland) The Christian Social Party is a political party in Switzerland. The CSP is more social democratic than the CVP. With the moderate Christian left as its background, the CSP commits itself to social democratic and environmentalist political solutions...	Christlich-soziale Partei or CSP	Parti chrétien-social or PCS	Partito Cristiano Sociale or PCS	Partida cristiansociala de la Svizra or PCS
BDP/PBD	Conservative Democratic Party	Bürgerlich-Demokratische Partei Schweiz or BDP	Parti bourgeois démocratique Suisse or PBD	Partito borghese democratico Svizzera or PBD	Partida burgais democratica Svizra or PBD
EVP/PEV	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...	Evangelische Volkspartei der Schweiz or EVP	Parti Evangelique Suisse or PEV	Partito Evangelico or PE	Partida Evangelica Svizra or PEV
FPS/PSL	Freedom Party Freedom Party of Switzerland The Freedom Party of Switzerland is a minor populist right-wing political party in Switzerland. Its president and leading representative is Jürg Scherrer, formerly the head of the security department in the city government of Biel/Bienne until 2008.- History :The FPS was founded 1984 in Zürich by...	Freiheits-Partei der Schweiz or FPS	Parti Suisse de la Liberté or PSL	Partito svizzero della Libertà or PSL	Partida Svizra da la Libertad or PSL
GPS/PES	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:...	Grüne Partei der Schweiz or Grüne	Parti Ecologiste Suisse or Les Verts	Partito Ecologista Svizzero or I Verdi	Partida Ecologica Svizra or La Verda
LPS/PLS	Liberal Party Liberal Party of Switzerland The Liberal Party of Switzerland was a party with economically liberal policies. It was known as a party of the upper class. On 1 January 2009 it merged with the larger Free Democratic Party to establish FDP.The Liberals....	Liberale Partei der Schweiz or LPS	Parti libéral suisse or PLS	Partito Liberale Svizzero or PLS	Partida liberal-conservativa Svizra or PLC
SD/DS	Swiss Democrats Swiss Democrats The Swiss Democrats are a right-wing political party in Switzerland.The party is not represented in the Federal Assembly, but has two members of the Grand Council of Aargau....	Schweizer Demokraten or SD	Démocrates Suisses or DS	Democratici Svizzeri or DS	Democrats Svizzers or DS
Lega	Ticino League Ticino League The Ticino League is an isolationist, national conservative political party in Switzerland active in the canton of Ticino.In 1991, after some public campaigning in the Sunday journal Mattino della Domenica against political power and use of public money, the editor Giuliano Bignasca and the...			Lega dei Ticinesi
EDU/UDF	Federal Democratic Union Federal Democratic Union of Switzerland The Federal Democratic Union of Switzerland is a political party in Switzerland....	Eidgenössisch-Demokratische Union or EDU	Union Démocratique Fédérale or UDF	Unione Democratica Federale or UDF	Uniun democrata federala or UDF
PdA/PST	Swiss Party of Labour	Partei der Arbeit der Schweiz or PdA	Parti suisse du travail - Parti Ouvrier et Populaire or PST-POP	Partito Comunista or PC	Partida svizra da la lavur or PSdL

Sources: The Swiss Federal Chancellery

Federal and cantonal parliaments

Minor groups

Historical parties

Names in the national languages

See also