During his tenure in government administration, Walter Buser presided over around 70,000 decisions by the Federal Council.
Keystone / Str
Walter Buser, the first and only Federal Chancellor from the Social Democratic Party, has died at the age of 93.
This content was published on
1 minute
Keystone-SDA/jdp
Buser’s family said on Wednesday that the former chief-of-staff passed away suddenly on August 17. Buser was born in 1926 in canton Basel Country and was elected chancellor on June 11, 1981.
The position is a political appointment but has only a technocratic role.
During his ten-year term as chancellor he established a leadership structure for crisis situations and reformed the approval process for popular initiatives. He also established regular press conferences and expanded the Federal Chancellery into a staff unit of the executive body.
Buser had a long and dedicated career in government administration including as vice-chancellor from 1968 to 1981. During his time as vice-chancellor and chancellor he missed only one out of 1,178 Federal Council meetings. Some 70,000 decisions were made by the Federal Council under his watch.
Following his retirement, Buser became president of the Forum Helveticum, which aims to promote language-cultural understanding across Switzerland’s linguistic regions.
More
More
Swiss Politics
First female Swiss cabinet chief-of-staff dies
This content was published on
The former Federal Chancellor, Annemarie Huber-Hotz, has died following a heart attack, aged 70.
Swiss bank vaults swell from geopolitical tensions
This content was published on
Assets managed by Swiss banks reached record levels in 2024, fuelled by an influx of foreign clients escaping geopolitical uncertainties.
This content was published on
The wage gap between married mothers and fathers in Switzerland is significantly worse than that between single woman and men.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
The Swiss government seen in a different perspective
This content was published on
The official photo shows the cabinet ministers and the chief of staff around the 2019 Swiss President taking a picture of a crowd of people.
This content was published on
As Switzerland’s Federal Chancellor, Walter Thurnherr has unique insights into the inner workings of the country’s government.
Switzerland’s 20 living ex-presidents: a world record
This content was published on
Twenty former Swiss presidents are still alive. What does this record say about the country’s political stability and leadership?
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.