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Alain Berset’s (left) popularity remains high, although his former head of communications Peter Lauener (right) is said to have systematically passed on information to Ringier CEO Marc Walder.
A blackmail affair, an odyssey in a private jet over France or the intervention against a mobile phone antenna – Federal President Alain Berset (50) has lined up affair after affair in recent months.
And now the Corona leaks: Berset’s long-time head of communications Peter Lauener (52) is said to have systematically passed on information to Marc Walder (57), the CEO of Ringier Verlag, who also publishes Blick, during the corona pandemic. Berset says he didn’t know anything about it. But Bundesbern has been in a state of excitement ever since. The pressure on Berset has increased significantly. The first calls for resignation have already been made.
Two-thirds do not believe in resigning
But now it is clear that none of this seems to be able to harm the reputation of the incumbent Federal President among the population. Although many people do not believe Alain Berset, his popularity remains high. This is indicated by a representative survey carried out by the Sotomo research institute on behalf of “NZZ am Sonntag”.
Berset is considered the third most likeable member of the Federal Council. Only Central Federal Councilor Viola Amherd (60) and SP Magistrate Elisabeth Baume-Schneider (59) are ahead of him. Berset’s sympathy ratings have not changed since the last SRG survey in October.
What is surprising is that only around a third of those surveyed believed Berset that he knew nothing about the information leaks in his internal department. 41 percent don’t believe him. Nevertheless, a clear majority of 64 percent does not believe in resigning.
Everyone else should be to blame
The political attitude of the interviewees seems to be decisive for the assessment of the events. While two-thirds of SVP voters rate the passing on of information as “serious”, a third of the SP base considers this to be “normal communication work”.
And that’s not all: the majority of those questioned do not see the main fault in the affair with Berset, but with everyone else involved. Compared to the “NZZ am Sonntag”, Sotomo Managing Director Michael Hermann speaks of a Trump effect on a small scale: “It’s not about whether what Berset says is true. But whether it really works.”
Wait for test results
SP Co-President Mattea Meyer (35) is pleased with the survey results: Berset’s high sympathy values showed “that people continue to have confidence in his politics and in the way he has led the country through the pandemic”. However, Meyer does not want to play down the indiscretions either. The Federal Council can no longer work together in a spirit of trust. But it is right not to make any prejudice and to wait for the results of the judiciary and the GPK.
The political opponent comes to completely different conclusions: “Berset’s popularity has only suffered because the revelations support something that people already knew beforehand: that there was a dedicated line between his department and the Ringier publishing house,” says SVP party leadership member Franz Grüter (59) cited.
The tide can turn quickly
However, the SVP is pretty much alone with demands for his resignation. A majority of the FDP also thinks that Berset does not have to vacate his post. In the middle base, a whopping 70 percent come to the conclusion that Berset does not have to resign. Central President Gerhard Pfister (60) explains this with respect for the institutions at his base. However, if it turns out that Berset lied, the tide should turn quickly: “Then trust and sympathy would also be gone from the middle base.”
The survey took place online from January 24th to 26th. 1,558 voters from German- and French-speaking Switzerland took part. (dba)