More than 30 candidates with disabilities will run in the Swiss parliamentary elections on October 22, 2023.
To promote the political involvement of people with disabilities, the Swiss organization Pro Infirmis supports the so-called “disabled list”. This consists of over 30 people living with disabilities who are running for a term on the National Council.
Active political participation of people with disabilities
People with disabilities must be represented at all political levels. But numerous barriers prevent those interested from actively participating in political events. This has huge consequences: people with disabilities are seriously underrepresented in political positions.
Candidates who would like to appear on the Swiss list of persons with disabilities describe themselves as persons with disabilities, officially run for public office and commit to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The purpose of the disability list is for many people with disabilities to work openly and together for better political representation. Through the network for politicians with disabilities, Pro Infirmis would like to support this movement in the long term and also support parties to become more inclusive.
The list is intended to support voters in voting for people with disabilities based on their own political preferences – because the list covers almost the entire political spectrum with over 30 people.
Party candidates
In the parliamentary elections on October 22, 2023, the 200 seats of the National Council and 45 of the 46 members of the Swiss Council of States will be re-elected.
O center presents four candidates, including the only two previous national councilors: Christian Lohr in Thurgau and Philipp Kutter in Zurich. Lohr already has 12 years of experience as a politician with a disability in the National Council and took up the election year role as chairman of the “Session for the Disabled” in spring 2023. Kutter is also running for the Council of States and could become the first representative with disability there. In total, the “center” is represented on the list with five candidacies.
O SP organized a first meeting for party members with disabilities this year. With 11 people, the party, together with JUSO, has the most candidates on the disabled list and brings together young and experienced politicians. With Islam Alijaj and Simone Feuerstein in Zurich, Nicole Tille in Freiburg, Tatjana Binggeli in Aargau and Cyril Mizrahi in Geneva, five politicians are running on the main SP lists.
O PPE places two candidates on the main lists: Simone Leuenberger and Serge Herren. Leuenberger reached the cantonal parliament in the last elections in Bern.
O PSD In 1991, Marc F. Suter was the first National Councilor to use a wheelchair. Today Ferdinand Pulver, local councilor in Reinach BL, has the best chance of inheriting his legacy for the FDP. A total of three liberal candidates in German-speaking Switzerland represent the liberals on the disabled list.
O Green Liberals communicated from the beginning within the party about the list of people with disabilities, after which, in addition to Marianne Plüss (Bern), who was already there when the list was released, four other candidates were added to sublists or to the youth party.
In addition to Tobias Fankhauser, who participated in the disability session in March 2023, there are two other candidates on the list “Health and Social Affairs” of the Greens in the canton of Basel. The party, which prominently anchored disability policy in the party program, pledged support for the disability list and promised to promote the issue within the party. Candidates can be added until October 22nd.
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Pro Infirmis – Elections