Zurich cantonal councillors with Noser advertisement for Trouble

The green certain day, Esther Guyer has been annoyed at the weekend, a majority of the Executive Council. That Camen Walker Späh, Ernst Stocker, Mario Fehr , Silvia Steiner and Natalie Rickli five members of the seven-member cantonal government in the same listing for Ruedi Noser as the Council of States, advertise, finds Guyer, "grip", as you said yesterday in the cantonal Parliament. In particular, they resented the "will o' the wisp the Mario Fehr", which recommends the opposite of his party, the SP, the free-minded Noser instead of the Green candidate, Marionna Schlatter.

In fact, it is unusual that five governing Council members jointly submit an ad for a choice recommendation. In accordance with the Federal court's case-law may Express authorities members as private individuals to voting or elections. You must not, however, give the impression, "it was an official pronouncement in particular, a collegial authority," writes the German Federal court in a Leiturteil. In particular, in the case of elections, the practice had to be interpreted even more strictly than in the case of votes.

the Regerieungsräte for Noser advertise. Photo: PD

It may be politically sensitive, to be, to turn those ads, "but legally it is not forbidden", says Lorenz Langer, a senior assistant at the University of Zurich, has published fight to the cantonal intervention in the Federal Vote. The case law is relatively generous. "The government would have to with the official seal for Noser to advertise so it would be prohibited," says Long.

and pays for the election advertising has Designed the FDP, says managing Director Urs Egger on request: "of Course, in consultation with the governing Council members, who are also in the support Committee of Ruedi Noser." Although no sender is on the listing, just the five governing Council members with name, function and party are listed, but for Egger, is "perfectly clear" that the advertisement originates from the FDP and the senior civil servants as private individuals, Ruedi Noser support.

All for one: part of the FDP ad for councillor Ruedi Noser. Photo: PD

That the government will have councillors and senior civil servants as private individuals, the advertisement involved was also emphasized by the spokesman of the government, Andreas Melchior: "The five members of the government represented in the advertisement your personal opinion and not a government of opinion." Within the government there had given to listing this Choice is also not a criticism. Election recommendations will not be subject to direction of Council's deliberations. And the question of whether the choice of recommendation for Noser and, therefore, against Schlatter, the relationship between the governing Council and of the Green-strain candidate would, if elected would not want to reply to Melchior. It was a hypothetical question.

Created: 05.11.2019, 09:42 PM