Due to a data import error, Switzerland had to slightly correct the results of some parties in Sunday’s National Council elections. The federal government published incorrect figures on the strength of parties, as the Federal Statistical Office explained today. The proportion of voters nominated for the conservative right-wing Swiss People’s Party (SVP), the center and the liberal FDP was too high.
The SVP received only 27.9% of the votes, instead of the 28.6% as initially published. According to the Federal Secretariat, the failure and its correction have no impact on the distribution of the 200 seats in the National Council or on the cantonal results.
However, the correction has consequences for the classification of party forces: contrary to previous information, the FDP continues to be the third strongest political force in the country. Its result was revised downwards by 0.13 percentage points, to 14.3%. However, the Center Party’s result was exaggerated by 0.52 percentage points; it now has a voter share of 14.1 percent. It was said that the fact that the center, with 29 seats, still has one more mandate than the FDP is due to list connections and remaining votes.