Elections in the city of Zurich – Left superiority is “hard bread” for Zurich bourgeois – News
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The left-wing parties have had a majority in the city parliament for four years. The commoners feel left out.
The balance of power in Zurich’s city parliament has been clear over the past four years. SP, Greens and the Alternative List together had a majority and were able to shape the city according to their plans. Means: more government support for the weak, more affordable housing, more space for bikes, more 30 km/h zones, fewer parking spaces. The left-wing parties in the expiring legislature marched in this direction. Or trampled, as felt for the commoners.
FDP and SVP feel ignored
“The last four years have been hard bread for us,” says Severin Pfluger, President of the city of Zurich’s FDP. There was no cross-party collaboration. According to Pfluger, the left had shown no consideration for the center parties or the conservatives, but rather played an uncompromising power play. “Many political issues were excluded.”
They were unwilling to work constructively with us.
Oliver Heimgartner disagrees. He is the president of the city’s SP, which, with 33 percent of voters, is clearly the strongest force in Zurich’s city parliament. It always takes two to compromise. FDP and SVP remained in total opposition. “They were not willing to work constructively with us,” says Heimgartner.
The green partner agrees. Luca Maggi, Vice-President of the city of Zurich’s Greens, also defends itself against the accusation that she had run over the commoners. You have simply implemented the order of the voters. “You can’t just lump the left-wing parties together,” adds Maggi. The majorities in parliament would reflect the city of Zurich’s population.
“There are always more radical proposals”
In fact, the SP, Greens and AL had majority votes behind them in most cases, although they overtook the left city government on some bills. For example, even more parking spaces were removed than originally planned by the city council. In addition, prominent projects have at least scratched federal law. Two of Left-Green’s ideas – a kind of ID card for paperless and financial support for undocumented people – are contrary to national laws, according to the commoners.
This development gives him a headache, says the President of the City of Zurich SVP, Mauro Tuena: “There are always more radical proposals.” According to Tuena, the left-green majority have completely lost their sense of proportion. That’s why a correction is urgently needed now – an end to the left-green majority in parliament, i.e. FDP and SVP. The view from the left is quite different: they want to keep the majority they won in 2018 in order to be able to implement the projects they have initiated. The elections on February 13 will show what the people of Zurich want.