The Government of Switzerland - The World Countries

National symbols

Swiss cross (white cross on red field, arms equal length); national colors: red, white.

The flag

The National flag of Switzerland has red square with a bold, equilateral white cross in the center that does not extend to the edges of the flag; various medieval legends purport to describe the origin of the flag; a white cross used as identification for troops of the Swiss Confederation is first attested at the Battle of Laupen (1339).

note: in 1863, a newly formed international relief organization convening in Geneva, Switzerland sought to come up with an identifying flag or logo; they chose the inverse of the Swiss flag - a red cross on a white field - as their symbol; today that organization is known throughout the world as the International Red Cross

The National Anthem

Title	the Swiss anthem has four names: "Schweizerpsalm" [German] "Cantique Suisse" [French] "Salmo svizzero," [Italian] "Psalm svizzer" [Romansch] (Swiss Psalm)
Lyric/music	Leonhard WIDMER [German], Charles CHATELANAT [French], Camillo VALSANGIACOMO [Italian], and Flurin CAMATHIAS [Romansch]/Alberik ZWYSSIG

note: unofficially adopted 1961, officially 1981; the anthem has been popular in a number of Swiss cantons since its composition (in German) in 1841; translated into the other three official languages of the country (French, Italian, and Romansch), it is official in each of those languages

More about the government of Switzerland

Constitution
Date of Independence	1 August 1291 (founding of the Swiss Confederation)
National holiday	Founding of the Swiss Confederation in 1291; note - since 1 August 1891 celebrated as Swiss National Day
Legal system	civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts, except for federal decrees of a general obligatory character
International law organization participation	accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
History	Previous 1848, 1874; latest adopted by referendum 18 April 1999, effective 1 January 2000
Amendments	Proposed by the two houses of the Federal Assembly or by petition of at least one hundred thousand voters (called the "federal popular initiative"); passage of proposals requires majority vote in a referendum; following drafting of an amendment by the Assembly, its passage requires approval by majority vote in a referendum and approval by the majority of cantons; amended many times, last in 2018
Citizenship
Citizenship by birth	no
Citizenship by descent only	at least one parent must be a citizen of Switzerland
Dual citizenship recognized	yes
Residency requirement for naturalization	12 years including at least 3 of the last 5 years prior to application
Executive Branch
Chief of state	President of the Swiss Confederation Viola AMHERD (since 1 January 2024)
Head of government	President of the Swiss Confederation Viola AMHERD (since 1 January 2024)
Cabinet	Federal Council or Bundesrat (in German), Conseil Federal (in French), Consiglio Federale (in Italian) indirectly elected by the Federal Assembly for a 4-year term
Elections/appointments	president and vice president elected by the Federal Assembly from among members of the Federal Council for a 1-year, non-consecutive term; election last held on 13 December 2023 (next to be held in December 2024)
Election results	2023: Viola AMHERD elected president for 2024; Federal Assembly vote - Viola AMHERD (The Center) 158 of 204; Karin Keller-Sutter (FDP.The Liberals) elected vice president for 2024; Federal Assembly vote - 138 of 196 2022: Alain BERSET elected president for 2023; Federal Assembly vote - Alain BERSET (SP) 140 OF 181; Viola AMHERD elected vice president; Federal assembly vote - 207 of 223
Legislative branch
Description	Bicameral Federal Assembly or Bundesversammlung (in German), Assemblée Fédérale (in French), Assemblea Federale (in Italian) consists of: Council of States or Ständerat (in German), Conseil des États (in French), Consiglio degli Stati (in Italian) (46 seats; members in two-seat constituencies representing cantons and single-seat constituencies representing half cantons directly elected by simple majority vote except Jura and Neuchatel cantons, which use list proportional representation vote; member term governed by cantonal law) National Council or Nationalrat (in German), Conseil National (in French), Consiglio Nazionale (in Italian) (200 seats; 194 members in cantons directly elected by proportional representation vote and 6 in half cantons directly elected by simple majority vote; members serve 4-year terms)
Elections	Council of States - last held in most cantons on 22 October 2023 (each canton determines when the next election will be held) National Council - last held on 22 October 2023 (next to be held on 31 October 2027)
Election results	Council of States - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - The Center 13, FDP.The Liberals 12, SP 9, SVP 6, Green Party 5, other 1; composition - men 30, women 16, percentage women 34.8% National Council - percent of vote by party - SVP 28.6%, SP 18%, The Center 14.6%, FDP.The Liberals 14.4%, Green Party 9.4%, GLP 7.2%, EDU 1.2, EDV/PEV 1.9%, MCR/MCG .5%, other 4%; seats by party - SVP 62, SP 41, The Center 29, FDP.The Liberals 28, Green Party 23, GLP 10, EDU 2, EDV/PEV 2, MCR/MCG 2, other 1; composition - men 123, women 77, percentage women 38.5%; note - total Federal Assembly percentage women 37.8%
Judicial branch
Highest court(s)	Federal Supreme Court (consists of 38 justices and 19 deputy justices organized into 7 divisions)
Judge selection and term of office	Judges elected by the Federal Assembly for 6-year terms; note - judges are affiliated with political parties and are elected according to linguistic and regional criteria in approximate proportion to the level of party representation in the Federal Assembly
Subordinate courts	Federal Criminal Court (established in 2004); Federal Administrative Court (established in 2007); note - each of Switzerland's 26 cantons has its own courts
Diplomatic representation in the US
Chief of mission	Ambassador Ralph HECKNER (since 18 September 2024)
Chancery	2900 Cathedral Ave NW, Washington, DC 20008
Telephone	[1] (202) 745-7900
FAX	[1] (202) 387-2564
Email address and website	[email protected] https://www.eda.admin.ch/washington
Consulate(s) general	Atlanta, Chicago, New York, San Francisco
Consulate(s)	Boston
Diplomatic representation from the US
Chief of mission	Ambassador Scott C. MILLER (since 11 January 2022) note - also accredited to Liechtenstein
Embassy	Sulgeneckstrasse 19, CH-3007 Bern
Mailing address	5110 Bern Place, Washington DC 20521-5110
Telephone	[41] (031) 357-70-11
FAX	[41] (031) 357-73-20
Email address and website	https://ch.usembassy.gov/
National heritage
Total World Heritage Sites	13 (9 cultural, 4 natural)
Selected World Heritage Site locales	Old City of Berne (c); Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch (n); Monte San Giorgio (n); Abbey of St Gall (c); Three Castles, Defensive Wall, and Ramparts of the Market-Town of Bellinzona (c); Rhaetian Railway in the Albula/Bernina Landscapes (c); La Chaux-de-Fonds/Le Locle, Watchmaking Town Planning (c); Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps (c); Benedictine Convent of St John at Müstair (c); Lavaux, Vineyard Terraces (c)

Key Political parties and their leaders in Switzerland

International organization participation

ADB (nonregional member)

AfDB (nonregional member)

Australia Group

BIS

CERN

EAPC

EBRD

EFTA

EITI (implementing country)

ESA

FAO

FATF

G-10

IADB

IAEA

IBRD

ICAO

ICC (national committees)

ICCt

ICRM

IDA

IEA

IFAD

IFC

IFRCS

IGAD (partners)

ILO

IMF

IMO

IMSO

Interpol

IOC

IOM

IPU

ISO

ITSO

ITU

ITUC (NGOs)

LAIA (observer)

MIGA

MONUSCO

NEA

NSG

OAS (observer)

OECD

OIF

OPCW

OSCE

Pacific Alliance (observer)

Paris Club

PCA

PFP

Schengen Convention

UNCTAD

UNESCO

UNHCR

UNIDO

UNITAR

UNMISS

UNMOGIP

UNOOSA

UNRWA

UNTSO

UNWTO

UPU

Wassenaar Arrangement

WCO

WHO

WIPO

WMO

WTO