This article lists the cantonal executives of Switzerland. Each canton of

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

has its own

executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dire ...

body, as well as

legislative body A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known as p ...

. The Federal Council is the executive of the Swiss federal government, and is included for purposes of comparison. The cantonal executives are

collegial Collegiality is the relationship between colleagues. A colleague is a fellow member of the same profession. Colleagues are those explicitly united in a common purpose and respect each other's abilities to work toward that purpose. A colleague is ...

bodies, each with 5 or 7 members. They are generally called ' (Executive Council) in German-speaking cantons and ' (State Council) in French-speaking cantons.

General structure

Presidents of the executives

The above mentioned collegial bodies are formally chaired by a president. However those presidents are

primus inter pares ''Primus inter pares'' is a Latin phrase meaning first among equals. It is typically used as an honorary title for someone who is formally equal to other members of their group but is accorded unofficial respect, traditionally owing to their sen ...

, that is a ''first among equals'' in the council. Other than presiding over meetings and the ability to cast tie-breaking votes the president only holds ceremonious powers. In the list below, if nothing else is noted, the official name of the office of president of the respective cantonal executive is ''Regierungsratspräsident'' (Government council president).

Elections

The cantonal governments are directly elected every four years. In some cantons the voters have the ability to (among candidates they also voted for as member of the government) vote for a president. From all members elected to the government, the member that has then received most votes for president, is directly elected president and then remains in that office for the entirety of their term as member of the council, i.e. 4 years (e.g.

Basel-Stadt Basel-Stadt or Basel-City (german: Kanton ; rm, Chantun Basilea-Citad; french: Canton de Bâle-Ville; it, Canton Basilea Città) is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of three municipalities with Basel as t ...

). In other cantons the electorate only appoints members to the council and the presidency rotates according to seniority among members (e.g.

Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...

and also in the federal council). The date of the elections is not the same as the date of the start of the tenure. For example the elections in

Aargau Aargau, more formally the Canton of Aargau (german: Kanton Aargau; rm, Chantun Argovia; french: Canton d'Argovie; it, Canton Argovia), is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eleven districts and its capita ...

were held in 2020 but the tenure of the new Executive started on 1 January 2021.

List

The below list is up to date .

General structure

Presidents of the executives

Elections

List

Notes and references

See also