This is a list of members of the Swiss Federal Council,, , , . in chronological order and for any given year since inauguration of the Federal Council, from 1848 to present. Its seven members constitute the federal government of Switzerland and collectively serve as the country's head of state. Each of the seven Federal Councillors heads a department of the Swiss federal administration.

The members of the Federal Council are elected for a term of four years by both chambers of the federal parliament sitting together as the United Federal Assembly. Each Federal Councillor is elected individually by secret ballot by an absolute majority of votes.This is the prevailing reading of the relevant constitutional provision: Once elected for a four-year-term, Federal Councillors can neither be voted out of office by a motion of no confidence nor can they be impeached. Reelection is possible for an indefinite number of terms. Parliament has decided not to reelect a sitting Federal Councillor only four times and only twice (in 2003 and 2007) since 1872. In practice, therefore, Federal Councillors serve until they decide to resign and retire to private life, usually after three to five terms of office.

Chronological, global

Decade First day in officeMembers are elected by federal parliament for a four-year term and traditionally re-elected. If the predecessor died in office, date of election, otherwise – if available – first day in office. Federal Councillors 1848 16 November 1848 Ulrich OchsenbeinNot reelected (Jean-Jacques Challet-Venel, Ulrich Ochsenbein, Ruth Metzler, Christoph Blocher) Jonas Furrer Josef Munzinger Henri Druey Friedrich Frey-Herosé Wilhelm Matthias Naeff Stefano Franscini 1850s 31 December 1854 Jakob Stämpfli 11 July 1855The office was previously declined by the first person elected: 11 July 1855 Johann Jakob Stehlin (1803–1879) BS; 18 December 1875 Charles Estoppey (1820–1888) VD; 10 December 1875 Louis Ruchonnet (1834–1893) VD, accepted later; 22 February 1881 Karl Hoffmann (1820–1895) SG; 3 March 1993 Francis Matthey (1942–2025) NE. Constant Fornerod 14 July 1855 Melchior Josef Martin Knüsel 30 July 1857 Giovanni Battista Pioda 1860s 30 July 1861 Jakob Dubs 31 December 1863 Karl Schenk 12 July 1864 Jean-Jacques Challet-Venel 31 December 1866 Emil Welti 31 October 1867 Victor Ruffy 1870s 1 February 1870 Paul Cérésole 28 May 1872 Johann Jakob Scherer 31 December 1872 Eugène Borel 31 December 1875Exceptionally low representation of the French and Italian speaking cantons, compared to the German speaking ones (1:6). In recent years, those were overrepresented 3:4 (proportional to their population). Currently, the 2:5 proportion is close to the population proportion. Joachim Heer Numa Droz Fridolin Anderwert Bernhard Hammer 31 December 1878 Simeon Bavier 1880s 3 March 1881 Louis Ruchonnet 10 April 1883 Adolf Deucher 13 December 1888 Wilhelm Friedrich Hertenstein 1890s 31 December 1890 Emil Frey 31 December 1891 Josef Zemp 31 December 1892 Adrien Lachenal 14 December 1893 Eugène Ruffy 16 August 1895 Eduard Müller Walter Hauser 31 March 1897 Ernst Brenner 14 December 1899 Marc-Emile Ruchet 1900s 31 December 1899 Robert Comtesse 11 December 1902 Ludwig Forrer 17 June 1908 Josef Anton Schobinger 1910s 4 April 1911 Arthur Hoffmann 14 December 1911 Giuseppe Motta 12 March 1912 Louis Perrier 17 July 1912 Edmund Schulthess Camille Decoppet 12 June 1913 Felix-Louis Calonder 26 June 1917 Gustave Ador 31 December 1917 Robert Haab 11 December 1919 Karl Scheurer 31 December 1919 Ernest Chuard Jean-Marie Musy 1920s 12 February 1920 Heinrich Häberlin 31 December 1928 Marcel Pilet-Golaz 12 December 1929 Rudolf Minger Albert Meyer 1930s 30 April 1934 Johannes Baumann Philipp Etter 15 April 1935 Hermann Obrecht 31 December 1938 Ernst Wetter 1940s 22 February 1940 Enrico Celio 31 July 1940 10 December 1940 Eduard von Steiger Walther Stampfli 31 December 1940 Karl Kobelt 31 December 1943 Ernst Nobs 31 December 1944 Max Petitpierre 31 December 1947 Rodolphe Rubattel 1950s 15 October 1950 Josef Escher 13 December 1951 Markus Feldmann 31 December 1951 Max Weber 9 December 1954 Thomas Holenstein 31 December 1954 Hans Streuli Paul Chaudet Giuseppe Lepori 11 December 1958 Friedrich Traugott Wahlen 1960s 31 December 1959Traditional "magic formula" of the Council's composition established: FDP/PRD 2, CVP/PDC 2, SPS/PSS 2, SVP/UDC 1. Willy Spühler Hans-Peter Tschudi Ludwig von Moos Jean Bourgknecht 30 June 1961 Hans Schaffner 30 September 1962 Roger Bonvin 31 December 1965 Rudolf Gnägi 31 December 1966 Nello Celio 1970s 31 December 1969 Ernst Brugger 31 January 1970 Pierre Graber 31 December 1971 Kurt Furgler 1 December 1973 Willi Ritschard 31 December 1973 Georges-André Chevallaz Hans Hürlimann 31 January 1978 Pierre Aubert Fritz Honegger 1980s 31 December 1979 Leon Schlumpf 31 December 1982 Rudolf Friedrich Alphons Egli 7 December 1983 Otto Stich 31 December 1983 Jean-Pascal Delamuraz 20 October 1984 Elisabeth Kopp 31 December 1986 Arnold Koller Flavio Cotti 31 December 1987 Adolf Ogi René Felber 12 January 1989 Kaspar Villiger 1990s 1 January 1990 1 April 1993 Ruth Dreifuss 1 November 1995 Moritz Leuenberger 1 April 1998 Pascal Couchepin 1 May 1999 Ruth Metzler Joseph Deiss 2000s 1 January 2001 Samuel Schmid 1 January 2003 Micheline Calmy-Rey 1 January 2004Government composition changed for the first time since 1959: FDP/PRD 2, SPS/PSS 2, SVP/UDC 2, CVP/PDC 1. Christoph Blocher Hans-Rudolf Merz 1 August 2006 Doris Leuthard 1 January 2008 Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf 1 November 2008In June 2008, parts of the SVP/UDC broke away to later form the new BDP/PBD. In this process, the two Federal Councillors who had been elected for the SVP/UDC became members of the BDP/PBD. Samuel Schmid Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf 1 January 2009 Ueli Maurer 1 November 2009 Didier Burkhalter 2010s 1 November 2010 Simonetta Sommaruga Johann Schneider-Ammann 1 January 2012 Alain Berset 1 January 2016 Guy Parmelin 1 November 2017 Ignazio Cassis 1 January 2019 Karin Keller-Sutter Viola Amherd 2020s 1 January 2021 Viola Amherd 1 January 2023 Albert Rösti Élisabeth Baume-Schneider 1 January 2024 Beat Jans 1 April 2025 Martin Pfister

Timeline

Notes

References

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