Magic Formula

The magic formula shares the seven cabinet seats among the four main political parties according to their electoral support. The magic formula is in use but it has no legal status. When it was used for the first time in 1959, it gave two seats to the centre-left Social Democratic Party, two to the centre-right Radical Party, two to the centre-right Christian Democratic Party and one to the right-wing Swiss People’s Party. The formula was modified in 2003, when the Christian Democrats lost a seat to the People’s Party, which had become the main political force. The magic formula also respects linguistic balance, giving four seats to German speakers and three to French/Italian speakers.