Philipp Mario Kutter (; born 31 August 1975) is a Swiss historian, journalist,

public relations consultant Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. Pu ...

and politician who currently serves as member of the National Council (Switzerland) for The Centre since 2018 and concurrently also serves as mayor (city president) of Wädenswil since 2010. He previously served on the

Cantonal Council of Zürich The Cantonal Council of Zürich (german: Zürcher Kantonsrat) is the legislature of the canton of Zürich, in Switzerland. Zürich has a unicameral legislature. The Cantonal Council has 180 seats, with members elected every four years. Election ...

between 2007 and 2018. In early February 2023, he broke two

cervical vertebrae In tetrapods, cervical vertebrae (singular: vertebra) are the vertebrae of the neck, immediately below the skull. Truncal vertebrae (divided into thoracic and lumbar vertebrae in mammals) lie caudal (toward the tail) of cervical vertebrae. In ...

while skiing, resulting in

paralysis Paralysis (also known as plegia) is a loss of motor function in one or more muscles. Paralysis can also be accompanied by a loss of feeling (sensory loss) in the affected area if there is sensory damage. In the United States, roughly 1 in 50 ...

of his legs and right arm. Consequently, he received inpatient care at the Swiss Paraplegic Centre in

Nottwil Nottwil is a municipality in the district of Sursee in the canton of Lucerne in Switzerland. History Nottwil is first mentioned around 1217-22 as ''Nottewile''. In 1275 it was mentioned as ''Otewile''. Nottwil is also the location where th ...

until the end of October 2023. During this time, he delegated all tasks at the municipal, regional, and national levels to his deputies. In August 2023, he was able to partially resume his duties as the city's mayor. By the end of 2023, he returned to live at home.

Early life and education

Kutter was born 31 August 1975 in Altstätten near St. Gallen, Switzerland. His parents hailed from the St. Gallen Rhine Valley and relocated to Wädenswil on Lake Zurich in 1982 when Kutter was seven years old. His father was a service manager at ''Wild Heerbrugg'', a machinery company. His mother is a former

flight attendant A flight attendant, also known as steward/stewardess or air host/air hostess, is a member of the aircrew aboard commercial flights, many business jets and some government aircraft. Collectively called cabin crew, flight attendants are prima ...

Swissair Swissair AG/ S.A. (German: Schweizerische Luftverkehr-AG; French: S.A. Suisse pour la Navigation Aérienne) was the national airline of Switzerland between its founding in 1931 and bankruptcy in 2002. It was formed from a merger between Bal ...

and later secretary. In 1993, Kutter obtained his Maturity (Typus B), in Zurich. He then studied history, communications and political science at the University of Zurich graduating with a Licentiate.

Politics

Kutter has been serving as member of the National Council (Switzerland) since 11 June 2018. He concurrently serves as mayor (city president) of Wädenswil. Previously he served on the

from 21 May 2007 to 31 July 2018.

Personal life

On 21 January 2012, Kutter married his wife Anja. They have two daughters and reside in Wädenswil on Lake Zurich.

References

{{reflist Living people 1975 births Members of the National Council (Switzerland) The Centre politicians Mayors of places in Switzerland University of Zurich alumni People from Altstätten People from Wädenswil