Women in the Federal Council

When Simonetta Sommaruga joined the Federal Council on 22 September 2010, it was the first time that a majority of Swiss government members were female – with four women and three men. It was a symbolic moment, after a long wait. The female majority remained until Micheline Calmy-Rey stood down at the end of 2011.

Majority of women in the Federal Council. With the election of Simonetta Sommaruga on 22 September 2010, four women were represented in the Federal Council for the first time. From left to right, Johann Schneider-Ammann, Didier Burkhalter, President Doris Leuthard, Micheline Calmy-Rey, Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf, Ueli Maurer, Simonetta Sommaruga and Federal Chancellor Corina Casanova. — © FCh

1984: The first woman

The first woman elected to the Federal Council: Accompanied by two clerks, Elisabeth Kopp raises her right hand to take the oath at her swearing in on 2 October 1984. — © STR, Keystone

It had taken until 1984, and the election of Elisabeth Kopp, for a Swiss woman to become a member of the federal government. After gaining the right to vote and to stand in elections in 1971, women had to wait patiently for a further 13 years for the first female member to be elected to the Federal Councils.

Her successors

Today, two women are members of the Federal Council: Karin Keller-Sutter (since 2019) and Elisabeth Baume-Schneider (since 2023).

Apart from the politicians already mentioned, Ruth Dreifuss (1993-2002, first female president of the Swiss Confederation in 1999), Ruth Metzler-Arnold (1999-2003), Micheline Calmy-Rey (2003-2011, president of the Swiss Confederation in 2007 and 2011), Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf (2007-2015, president of the Swiss Confederation in 2012), Doris Leuthard (2006-2018, president of the Swiss Confederation in 2010 and 2017), Simonetta Sommaruga (2010-2022, president of the Swiss Confederation in 2015 and 2020) and Viola Amherd (2019-2025, president of the Swiss Confederation in 2024) have also held seats in the Federal Council, bringing the total of female members so far to ten.

Women in the Federal Council since 1984