Aeschi proposes a ticket with at least two candidates to succeed Parmelin

Thomas Aeschi, leader of the Swiss People's Party (SVP) group in the federal chambers, says he favours a "ticket" - a list with at least two names - for the succession to Guy Parmelin on the Federal Council. The Zug national councillor set out this position on Saturday in an interview with Swiss German-language broadcaster SRF.

Asked whether the list should include at least one woman, Aeschi did not answer directly. He did say, however, that the Federal Council needs "sia donne, che uomini" (both women and men). In his view, the country's language regions should also be "adeguato" (adequately) represented among the proposed candidates.

Aeschi also listed other criteria a prospective Federal Councillor should meet: leadership ability, the capacity to assert oneself, and a certain charisma. The SVP group leader did not name any specific candidates, however, limiting himself to sketching out the ideal profile.

No official name yet

So far, no candidacy has been officially announced for Parmelin's succession. Asked whether he might run himself, Aeschi gave nothing away, saying only that he would announce his decision "a tempo debito" (at the appropriate time).

Since Parmelin announced his resignation on 24 September, the news has mostly been about withdrawals. Several senior SVP figures have already ruled themselves out of the race: Magdalena Martullo-Blocher, party president Marcel Dettling, and, more recently, St. Gallen Council of States member Esther Friedli.