Switzerland's Far-right Leader is Kicked Out of Cabinet

Christoph Blocher, Switzerland's hard line populist leader, was kicked out of the Swiss government yesterday in a coup that plunged Swiss politics into uncertain territory.

Despite leading his anti-immigrant Swiss People's Party (SVP) to a second general election victory seven weeks ago, Blocher, a billionaire businessman and justice minister in the outgoing government, was caught napping by a deft piece of overnight political maneuvering by Social Democrats and Christian Democrats who blocked his path to cabinet by persuading a party colleague to stand against him.

The defeat for Blocher changed the rules of a normally staid and predictable political culture, and left his party pledging to go into opposition rather than take part in the coalition government that invariably rules Switzerland.

The defeat was due to political plotting by Social Democrats and Christian Democrats who vowed to oppose Blocher, but not his party, and sprang a surprise by backing one of Blocher's party colleagues for his cabinet seat.

Under the decentralized Swiss system the federal government in Berne comprises a mere seven ministers, one of whom serves a one-year term as federal president, equivalent to prime minister.

The seats are allocated by parliamentary voting on each candidate from four parties. Blocher's SVP is entitled to two seats in the cabinet. His party took 29% of the vote in October's general election, lengthening its lead from 2003 when it first emerged as the country's strongest political party.

While two of Blocher's colleagues were voted into the cabinet yesterday, Blocher failed to muster a simple majority of the valid votes cast.

His party colleague, Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf, beat him for the seat after being persuaded late on Tuesday by Blocher's political enemies to stand against him.

Blocher led his party to victory in October by running a strident anti-immigrant and anti-EU campaign, infamously using election posters showing a black sheep being kicked off the Swiss flag by a trio of white sheep.

"A painful defeat for the SVP," said Switzerland's most respected newspaper, the Neue Zürcher Zeitung. "Something historic happened in today's election."

The SVP was plunged into disarray and infighting by the coup.

Widmer-Schlumpf came under strong pressure to forfeit her cabinet seat and said she needed time to make her mind up.