Geneva, Jan. 2, (dpa/GNA) – Swiss Defence Minister Viola Amherd has taken up her additional post as the nation’s president.
The seven federal councillors of Switzerland alternate as president for one year at a time in a unique aspect of the constitution.
Amherd succeeded Health and Home Affairs Minister Alain Berset, who left government on December 31 at his own request after 12 years.
Amherd, 61, is a lawyer who has been a member of parliament in Bern since 2005 and was elected to the Federal Council by both chambers of parliament in 2019.
She is a member of the central Mitte party, which was formed in 2021 from the merger of the Christian Democratic People’s Party (CVP) and the Civic Democratic Party (BDP).