Swiss government seat: Ritter and Pfister nominated to succeed Amherd
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Swiss government seat: Ritter and Pfister nominated to succeed Amherd
Markus Ritter from St Gallen and Martin Pfister from Zug were officially nominated by the Centre Party on Friday to succeed Defence Minister Viola Amherd. The two-man ticket had been expected.
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The official proposal for Amherd’s replacement on March 12 is the logical result of the past few weeks. Following the announcement of Amherd’s resignation, only Ritter and Pfister were interested in succeeding her.
+ Swiss Defence Minister Viola Amherd announces resignation
On Friday, the parliamentary group heard both candidates and subsequently recommended that the Federal Assembly elect one of the two men. In previous years, it was customary to give parliament a choice of candidates. This is now guaranteed with the two-person ticket.
It is customary to adhere to these nominations. However, parliament is not obliged to do so. Voting is by secret ballot. Who voted for whom is not disclosed. There has been criticism of the candidates on various occasions – particularly from left-wing parties.
Translated from German by DeepL/ts
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